Brave New World
by DarylDixon'sLover
Summary: Six years after the demise of Rick Grimes, Daryl Dixon is struggling to cope with the grief of losing the brother he had. But what happens when he stumbles upon a lone Spanish family, where one of which is related to Negan? Daryl/OC. Co – Written with WalkingPotterGirl14.
1. Chapter 1

Summary: Six years after the demise of Rick Grimes, Daryl Dixon is struggling to cope with the grief of losing the brother he had. But what happens when he stumbles upon a lone Spanish family, where one of which is related to Negan? Daryl/OC. Co – Written with WalkingPotterGirl14.

Brave New World

Chapter 1

* * *

It had been six years since they'd lost Rick on the bridge when he'd blown himself and the herd up to stop them from destroying the communities. It had been so damn long. And to this day, Daryl still felt awful for what had happened.

He had been struggling with the grief. He should have dragged Rick onto his bike and told him to fuck the bridge. Now Michonne was alone, and Judith didn't have her dad anymore. She had grown up so much and Rick had missed almost all of it.

Maggie hadn't been able to cope. She'd left with Hershel to stay with Georgie, so she could learn how to be a leader. She'd named him, Beth and Jesus as her second, third and fourth in command. Judith was now ten years old. She had found a group of people nearly swarmed by walkers. His heart sank as he thought of Rick, and how proud he'd be of everyone.

He was trying for Rick. The man who had been like another brother to him and was now dead. They'd searched the area for four weeks, but there had been no sign of him. Nothing. Not even a damn body or parts of one.

It crushed Daryl, knowing that Rick was dead, and they didn't even have a body to bury at the Alexandria Safe Zone.

Carol and Ezekiel had married, with Carol wanting him to walk her down the aisle. He had been touched that she'd wanted him of all people to walk her down the aisle. He'd walked her down and visited her at the Kingdom, while helping Beth, Aaron and Jesus run Hilltop.

The Saviors were leaving them alone, but Laura and Alden had joined them after Jed had declared himself the leader of the Saviors. Daryl knew it would be only a matter of time before the Sanctuary fell.

Now, he was staying on the outside hunting, trying to get his mind off of what was happening. As he looked through the woods, he moved his hair to the side and spotted something in the distance.

He kept his crossbow close, as he saw a farmhouse up ahead. It was in the middle of nowhere. He noticed footprints on the muddy ground and kept on following the tracks.

That was until he heard a loud bang, and a searing pain came right through him. He looked down to see that he had been shot in the left shoulder. He started seeing dots in his vision, before he passed out on the forest floor.

* * *

Emilia García had been checking over the dwindling supplies that she and her two brothers had managed to find. They needed to find more food soon or start farming and hunting.

But that was when she heard a loud gunshot echo around the house. Swearing, she hurried outside and saw a body on the ground. She cautiously checked his pulse, and he was still breathing.

"Dante, you fucking idiota! You just nearly killed someone and probably attracted walkers to us!" She said angrily. Carlos hurried over.

"What the fuck happened?!"

Emilia sighs. "Dante had a fucking trigger finger, that's what happened," she growls. Dante came rushing out as Emilia and Carlos lift up the person's body. He looked shocked that had happened.

"I'm sorry, he was dark and walking slowly and-"

Emilia shakes her head. "Dante, just go inside. We need to take care of him." Dante watches as they bring the man inside before sighing. At that moment, her sister, Lucia, comes racing down the stairs. "What the hell is going on?"

"Dante shot a random guy." She places the man down on their couch. "Gringo didn't even see it coming. God, a couple inches closer and you could have killed him." She turns to Dante. "You don't even know if this man has people! What if he died and they came after us?"

Dante walks away, clearly not wanting to be yelled at. Emilia rolls her eyes and walks towards the unconscious man. "Is he alright?" She nods her head, resting her hand on his forehead.

"He doesn't have a fever. He should be fine. I think the pain just knocked him out." She lifts him up a bit and then spots that there was no hole. "NO exit wound. Shit." She looks over at Carlos. "You gotta go in. I hate touching guts."

Carlos rolls his eyes. "Baby." He comes over and opens up the wound. Emilia walks over to the other side, placing her hands on either side of the man's head. This was a technique she had always done with her patients whenever they felt pain. There was a certain point in the head where, if you rubbed it right, you felt no pain. It was like ecstasy for a few single moments. She hears the man grunt out in pain and that's when she starts to rub.

"It's okay," she whispers into his ear. She didn't know if the man heard her, but she knew it might help. "You'll be okay. You're somewhere else." The man doesn't make another sound, his body untensing. She loved her trick. Carlos pulls out the still put-together bullet, smiling.

"Done!"

Lucia watches from the door. Emilia walks over to the man's wound before looking at her sister. "You gonna just stand there or help?" Lucia snorts and leaves, going back up the stairs. Emilia rolls her eyes once more. "I swear, I'm going to kill her one day, not the walkers." She gets down on her knees and pulls out her med kit. "You're gonna be alright, stranger. Just believe me."

And then she got to work.

* * *

When Daryl woke up next, he noticed that he was in a bed, tucked in. What he saw next was a chair in the corner that held his vest and his bow. Okay…however he got here, the people hadn't taken away his weapon. When he tried to move, he noticed the pain that surged through him. He glances down and saw he was in a different shirt as well.

He peeks into the shirt with a raised brow. They had stitched up the wound. He had been shot and they had saved him too.

What the fuck was going on?

He tries to move but feels that his shoulder isn't going to let him get too far. Before he could even make a step towards the floor, the door to the room opens.

Daryl's eyes snap up and he sees a woman with long brown hair that was curly, and her eyes were a hazel brown. She had tanned skin, certainly from some sort of Spanish descent. He had only seen that skin with them. Or it could be something else for all he knew. He didn't really know much anymore about the world.

"Oh, you're awake." He had noticed she brought what looked like a sandwich. She walks over to the bed and places it on the covers. He looks at her suspiciously. She smiles. "Don't worry. I wouldn't have wasted all that time stitching you up to poison you. Eat it. You need the energy." Daryl looks at her quietly before glancing at the sandwich. She did have a point.

Quietly, he takes a bite into it, looking back at her. "Who are ya?"

She grabs a chair and drags it over to the edge of the bed. "My name is Emilia García. The dipshit that shot you is my older brother, Dante. He tries to be a marksman but sometimes he should really just stick to his knives. You'll probably see another girl cross by eventually, and that's my sister Lucia. The one who unfortunately had to drag your ass in here was my brother, Carlos. I stitched you up."

He nods his head. "Why'd you heal me?"

She snorts. "Why else? We don't know you, but we don't know if you have people. Last thing we needed to know is that if we did leave you to die, then others would come after us. I have a family to protect. I'm not just gonna let some stranger's death take it over us." She tilts her head. "Speaking of stranger, I told you my name. Should probably tell me yours before I take out the stitching."

He looks at her quietly, but after spotting the joking grin on her face, he noticed that she was just playing around. "Daryl Dixon."

She nods her head. "Suits you." At that moment, the door opens and Carlos steps in. "Oh good, you're awake. Can you stand?"

Daryl's brow raises. "Kinda."

"That's all we need. Hermana, dead are coming."

Emilia cursed at his words, knowing that Dante shooting at Daryl had attracted the walkers to them. She gave Daryl his poncho, vest, and jacket, as she started taking out his stitches.

Once they were out of the room, they quickly hurried downstairs. Daryl saw a young woman with wavy black hair smiling flirtatiously at him, despite what was going on. He furrows his brow but looks away.

"What's going on, Carlos?" She asked suspiciously. Carlos sighed as he looked at his youngest sister, while Emilia grabbed the bag that contained their guns, ammo, and what little food and medicine they had.

"We're leaving the farmhouse, Lucia. There's walkers heading straight towards us. Probably got drawn by Dante's trigger finger," Carlos said darkly, glaring at his younger brother as they quickly hurried out of the house.

Daryl took the front while Emilia covered him. Agnes, the sibling's grandmother, was slowing them down. It was clear that the elderly woman was sick. He grimaced as they kept on going, taking out the lone straggler with an arrow or their knives. He glanced at the family. It was obvious that Carlos and Emilia were the ones that were sensible, not Dante and Lucia who seemed to be rather reliant on their siblings keeping them safe.

"Can we stop for a minute please? My feet hurt," Lucia complained resentfully. Reluctantly, they stopped while the woman rested her feet.

"Look, I know we don't know you, but where are we going, Daryl? Is there anywhere that can be called safe?" Emilia asked quietly, as they moved away from Lucia's whining voice.

Daryl looked at her contemplatively. She and her family didn't look like they were bad people. Carlos and Emilia struck him as the two who would willingly help people, while Dante reminded him unpleasantly of Spencer. Lucia reminded him a bit of Trisha, one of Negan's former wives.

Completely reliant on other people, and not wanting to help herself in any way. He grimaced in disgust at her attitude.

"I'm from a community that's called the Hilltop. It's part of the Militia, which are four communities. The Kingdom, Alexandria, Oceanside and the Hilltop Colony are run by the leaders, and we take in survivors," Daryl explained quietly. They walked through the woods and tried to keep an eye out for any walkers.

"Do you think we could probably stay at one of the communities for a bit if you're willing to take us? It's just…my grandmother isn't young, and she needs somewhere to rest…she can't stay out in the woods for long," Emilia said finally. Daryl nodded as it started raining lightly.

"Hilltop's not crowded like Alexandria, the Kingdom and Oceanside, but we'll go to the Alexandria Safe Zone first. Get ya'll introduced to the leaders and the Militia," Daryl said finally. Emilia nodded as Daryl's walkie-talkie crackled.

"Daryl, are you alright?" The voice on the radio asked concerned. Daryl smiled at hearing Aaron's voice. The man was a good friend to him. He had been helping him and Beth since Rick had died.

"I'm fine. Had a little incident but I'm comin' back with a family of survivors to the Alexandria Safe Zone. I'll met ya, Beth and Jesus there," he explained gruffly. The radio crackled.

"We're on our way. Be careful, Daryl," Aaron said quietly. Daryl nodded and ended the conversation. They continued on walking until they saw four walkers up ahead.

Daryl took the first one out with his crossbow, while Emilia used her bow, and pulled the arrow out from its forehead. Carlos had used his knife. Nice and silent.

"How are you doing, Gran?" Carlos asked concerned. The woman sighed tiredly as they stopped for a minute on a hill that overlooked the roads that the militia had cleared.

"Tired, very tired. I don't think I have long left," Agnes said tiredly. Daryl saw how worried Emilia and Carlos looked, unlike Dante and Lucia, who didn't seem to give a fuck.

They waited at least ten minutes when Jesus and Aaron showed up with one of the wagons driven by horses towards them. He wouldn't lie, it amused him to see the shocked expressions on Emilia, Carlos, Dante, Lucia and Agnes's faces.

"What the fuck is this, shit?! Who the fuck are these people, redneck?!" Dante shouted distrustfully, gathering the attention of a few stray walkers.

"Dante, keep your voice down and don't talk to him like that! He saved our fucking lives. He and his friends are helping us," Emilia hissed warningly, her brown eyes flashing.

Dante spat on the grass in disgust and caught sight of them kissing. His expression darkened.

Emilia nudged his shoulder harshly. She knew about how Dante viewed that kind of world and she hated it. He needed to grow the fuck up. A man with a long beard comes off the wagon first. "Daryl, are you alright?"

"'m fine, Aaron. They helped me out here. Just help the old woman to the wagon first." Aaron nods. She assumes the other man is named Jesus, and he gets off. He comes over and holds out his hand.

"My name is Paul, but my friends call me Jesus. This is Aaron. You saved Daryl?"

Emilia shrugs. "I did the stitching. Carlos carried him in." He snorts and crosses his arms across his chest.

"It was nothing. Don't worry about it."

Jesus smiles. "Well, thank you. We don't know what we'd do without Daryl. He's one of the main guys where we are." Daryl snorts and turns away. Emilia and Carlos help Agnes onto the wagon. She stops them before turning to Daryl.

"By the way, hijo, my name is Agnes. I'm their grandmother. I barely got to meet you. I was in a bedroom. Thank you for saving us." Instantly looking into the older woman's eyes, Daryl felt the same kind of compassion he did when he looked at Carol. This person had been through a lot. He could sense that she was nothing but peace.

"It's nothing. Just get ya to safety." Agnes smiles before the two siblings help her into the wagon while the other ones just climb in. Aaron raises an eyebrow at Daryl. He shakes his head. "I don't know. They just are like that."

Aaron shrugs. "Let's hope the others don't mind." Once Agnes was in, they all climbed into the wagon afterwards. "Alright, let's get outta here."

* * *

Once they reached Alexandria, Emilia watched as the door swings open. Her eyes widen. This whole entire neighbourhood looked untouched by the world outside. There were houses that looked completed, and gardens and areas where people farmed and made items. It looked like heaven to her compared to other areas.

"Is…is this what all the places are like?"

She looks over at Daryl, who nods his head.

"Ain't completely. Hilltop and the others are still working on good houses, but we all got crops and food. Animals. Been rebuilding from the trees and all that." Aaron stops the wagon and helps the siblings and people off of it. Emilia comes off herself, looking around.

She turns to Daryl. "Hey." He glances over at her. "Thanks for saving us. Seriously. That herd would have overwhelmed the house. We used to have more people but…well…"

Daryl nods. "Thanks for savin' me," he replies. "Even though ya did shoot me," he adds on.

She snorts. "That we did."

Lucia's face brightens. "Oh my god, is there hot water here?!"

Emilia sighs and comes forward. "We aren't staying here yet. Calm down." At that moment, a couple of people emerge from the house that's right in the front. Emilia spots a blonde girl with short hair, a black woman with a katana, and a younger girl that looked like she was about ten. She had a sheriff's hat on her head.

"Daryl brought you in?" The blonde one asks. Emilia nods. "Well, if he didn't put a bag over your heads, I'm assuming he doesn't see you as threats. I'm Beth." She holds out her hand. Emilia shakes it with a smile. "I'm one of the leaders around Alexandria. Jesus is as well, but you already met him. This is Michonne, my co-leader." Michonne nods at her. Emilia could instantly tell she was going to like her. She seemed like she knew her shit and didn't trust no one. Good for her. "And this is Judith Grimes, Michonne's daughter."

"Judith Grimes," Emilia states, looking over at the little girl. "How old are you, chica?"

"Ten."

"Ten. Man, I'm sure you kick ass with that little hat of yours."

"She actually is a great shot." Emilia looks over at where Daryl spoke up. "I taught her. She'll keep your back as long as you keep hers."

Emilia smiles. "I'll be sure to." She looks over at Carlos. He steps up.

"I'm Carlos Garcia and this is Emilia. Those two are Lucia and Dante, our siblings." They give a half-hearted wave. "That is Agnes, our grandmother. We were residing in a farmhouse when someone got a little trigger happy and attracted a herd to us." Dante looks down at the ground. "We just want a place where our abuela can rest. She isn't as young as she used to be. If we keep her out on the road, she will grow ill. We want to keep her as alive as possible. We don't even need to be here, we can go to one of the other communities."

Beth looks at them silently. "You have any farming skills?"

"Yes. I know how to ranch horses, milk cows and butcher animals for meat." Beth's brow raises.

"You're a stock of all trades?"

"Someone had to learn."

She chuckles. "Someone always does. You're right." She turns to Emilia. "What about you?"

"Well, I was an NICU doctor for a long time, but I have plenty of training experience. If any of the communities needs an extra doctor, I'd be willing to lend a helping hand."

"Hilltop does need a doctor," Jesus states. "They could stay in one of the bigger homes with how large the group is."

Michonne glances over at the other two siblings. "What about you?"

Before they could speak, Carlos speaks up. "They ain't special, but we'll find something for them to do. We don't sit on our asses anymore." He glares at Lucia, who glares back. He turns to Agnes. "But this woman? Once she gets rest, I guarantee you will get the best damn cookies of your life."

Judith smiles widely. "Really? Carol's cookies are amazing."

"There will be a competition then," Emilia states. "Battle of the Cookies if you let us stay."

Daryl snorts from where he stood. He had to admit it would be funny to see if Carol's cookies were better than Agnes. A grandmother always did seem to have the best cooking. He looks over at Beth, who looked over at the other two.

"I think there's a place for you at Hilltop," Michonne clarifies. "They need a lot more help since Maggie left with Hershel. I think you would fit there. Daryl works over at the Hilltop with Beth, so you can stay there. We have our hands full here."

Carlos brow furrows. "Can I ask a question?"

Michonne nods. "Ask away."

"This place looks pretty damn reformed. What are your rules here? Do you have a jail if someone fucks up?"

Michonne exchanges a look with Daryl. He nods. He always thought it was better to tell the survivors rather than hold it off. "We do have rules and a jail. I'm sure Daryl will explain it to you once you're in Hilltop. We do have one person who will forever remain in jail here after what he's done."

Emilia's brow furrows. "Jesus. What could the man have done to be in jail in this world?"

Jesus sighs. "He ran a group called the Saviors. Fucking killed half our people. Lot of good people. His men were monsters…don't know about the rest that are alive. The leader, Negan, is the one in jail here."

Emilia freezes. Her body turns completely cold.

"Did…did you say…Negan?"

* * *

 _Enjoy, and review :)_


	2. Chapter 2

Summary: Six years after the demise of Rick Grimes, Daryl Dixon is struggling to cope with the grief of losing the brother he had. But what happens when he stumbles upon a lone Spanish family, where one of which is related to Negan? Daryl/OC. Co – Written with WalkingPotterGirl14.

 **Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, followed and favourited this story. It truly means a lot to me and WalkingPotterGirl14.**

 **Special Thanks To: redbullcatwoman, BleedingHeartsoftheWorld, MadeInIreland, celia azul, Krissy8927, Katie MacAlpine, Daryl Dixon's Wife xx and Dixon-Vixen13. ** ** ** ** **Negan in this is like in the show, but his and Emilia's relationship is not romantic. This is strictly a Daryl/OC story.************

Brave New World

Chapter 2

* * *

"Yeah, we said Negan's here...why?" Daryl asked wearily, seeing how Emilia's face paled at the name of the man who had been the leader of the Saviors.

He was here...her ex-husband who had made her life a misery. Who had betrayed her so many times. He was right here. She felt like she might throw up or faint.

"He's my ex-husband…. we were married long before he met his second wife, but we divorced…what has he done?" Emilia asked horrified, dreading Daryl's answer to her question.

The group looked surprised at her admission. Even Daryl was shocked. Emilia definitely did not look old enough to be the wife of someone like Negan. But Daryl sighed heavily as he looked at her. She was looking at him with an expression of dread on her face.

"He was the leader of a group called the Saviors. They went around to communities to have half of the supplies. If they complied, they were left alone but if they didn't comply, they got their head smashed in with his barbed baseball bat called Lucille…he's killed a lot of people, Emilia," Daryl explained quietly. He saw her dark brown eyes flash with disgust

Her ex-husband was a monster. It made her relieved in a way that they had never had children. She swallowed back bile and looked at Daryl silently. Carlos comes forward. "I swear to God I'll beat that motherfucker." Emilia shakes her head.

Negan had done this. He'd killed innocent people just, so he could have half of their supplies? She felt like she had walked into a nightmare. She took in a few deep breaths.

"I want to see him and have a few words with him. If that's alright?" She requested quietly, her voice shaking with anger.

Daryl exchanged a look with Aaron, Beth, Jesus and Michonne before they all nodded in silent agreement. He nodded at her, and then led her to the place that served as Negan's cell. The walk to the house where Negan was kept in a cell was silent. Daryl glanced at Emilia who was trembling with anger. He couldn't believe that she'd been married to Negan, but she had said that they'd divorced long before the outbreak.

"He's down here in the basement. I'll be behind ya in case he tries anythin'," he said quietly. Emilia nodded in thanks. He watched her go down the stairs and he followed silently.

The last six years had not been kind to Negan. His beard had gone grey, and his face was gaunt from trying to starve himself slowly to death. He looked up at hearing them approach and moved out of the shadows. He saw Daryl enter the room.

"Daryl, what a surprise to see you here! Are you here to finally kill me after all the shit I did to you?" He asked bored. Daryl had never come to visit him before.

Daryl glared at him with an expression of pure hatred, before nodding at Emilia to come forward. He spoke calmly.

"There's someone here to see ya. She ain't happy with what yer done, Negan," he growled warningly. He was interested in what Emilia had to say to Negan.

Emilia stepped forward from the shadows. Negan actually paled at the sight of the woman who was his very first wife, before he had met Lucille.

"Hello, Negan."

* * *

Emilia stared in pure disgust at where Negan sat behind the bars of the cell and took in a deep breath. She stood in front of him and began to talk calmly.

"I have to admit, I always knew you were alive. I knew you had the guts. But never did I think that the day my ex-husband would become a sadistic man who went around bashing people's heads in with a barbed wire baseball bat. Or actually let his own men go around killing children and intimidating people," she said disgusted. Negan looked up at her.

"Shit, you still look hot even though you've got walker blood on your clothes and body. Where's the rest of your family?" Negan asked amused. Emilia glared in disgust.

"You killed innocent people, Negan. You killed two men, fucking humiliated the rest, and knowing you, tried to psychologically break the leader. What is wrong with you?" She asked angrily.

Negan glared at her in annoyance. She always pissed him off when she got mad like this after finding out he cheated on her with other women.

"They fucked with me."

Her brow raises. "They…fucked with you?" She laughs, shaking her head. "Holy shit. They FUCKED with you?! That's why you'd go around bashing heads in and making people feel like shit? Or is that just what you like to do? Bet you did that with your second wife too, huh?!"

Negan sends her an angry glare. "You don't know SHIT about Lucille."

"Oh, but I do. I know that she's the person you talked to when we were still together. She's the person you went to after years of us being apart. And she's the person that is dead now because you couldn't take care of her. Just like you couldn't ever take care of me. If anything, you fucking hurt me, and others more than I can ever say. And I'm fucking glad I'm not with that mindset anymore." She takes a step towards the bars. "You are goddamn lucky this door isn't opened because if it was-"

"You'd kill me?" He hisses at her. "People have already tried that, sweetie."

"No. I'd never kill you." She points towards the wall. "I'd string you up against that wall and beat the ever-loving shit out of you until you BEGGED me to make you die, and then leave you to suffer in your own spit and pain and blood. But this door is locked. And I won't do that." She steps away, noticing how he had gone silent. "I don't care that you're here. I don't care whatsoever. Goodbye, Negan. I hope you rot in this cell."

Daryl watches as Emilia steps back up towards the stairs. Daryl throws one last parting glare at Negan before following back up, locking the door behind him. That was the first time he had ever seen the man been completely quiet, even after his own surgery.

* * *

"Damn, woman."

Emilia looks over once she and Daryl had emerged from the house. "What?"

"Ya know, for someone so tiny ya got a lot of anger. Remind me to never piss ya off," he mumbles. She rolls her eyes.

"You have no idea what that man has done to me and you never wanna know," she mutters darkly before returning to her siblings. Beth looks over at her.

"You okay?"

Emilia nods, smiling at Carlos. He had been her confident in her whole Negan situation. He knew about everything. "Everything is good. I'd just like to move to where this Hilltop place is. I need to get that man off of my head."

Michonne nods. "Beth and Daryl will lead you back and you can take a wagon to make sure you all get there. If anything, you'll reach the area by sundown." Emilia nods.

"Thank you, again. For all of this."

Michonne nods her head as she wraps an arm around Judith. "It's just what we do."

Emilia nods before looking back over at Beth. "Then let's get to it then."

* * *

When they arrived at Hilltop, the first thing Emilia heard was Dante muttering to Lucia. "This place looks more like a mierda-hole than the farm." Emilia had spun around and smacked him upside the head, whispering _'shut the fuck up.'_

She hated that her oldest sibling and her youngest sibling were such spoiled fucking brats. She'd think the world would humble them a bit, but she guessed not.

Agnes was resting next to Carlos, and once they were there, he helped her towards the big house that rested on top of the hills. There was definitely more farmland here, but there were some trailers and smaller houses that people seemed to live in. Emilia would be fine with that.

"This is so quaint," she says quietly as she comes off. "And not a lot of people live here?"

Daryl shrugs his shoulders. "Some people like the big ass houses of Alexandria more. I don't mind. Just like the quiet here."

"I like the big ass houses too," Lucia mutters.

Emilia glares at her before sending an apologetic look towards Daryl. "I'm sorry, she-"

"I get it. Don't gotta apologize." He turns to head into the house when Beth calls out from the porch.

"Daryl! Someone's missed you!" At that moment, a large German Shepherd comes spiralling out of the house and into Daryl's arms, licking his face. Emilia chuckles as he rests the dog down, letting him calm himself while his tail wagged.

Daryl had gotten the animal from out on a hunt a few years back after Rick had been killed. He had trained it and it was the best hunter dog he ever knew. And was a big baby at the same time. He couldn't count how many times the mutt had come to his door scratching because he was afraid of thunder.

And he let him in each time.

"Who's this guy?" He hears a voice ask. He looks over at Emilia who held out her hand. The dog sniffed it before licking her fingers and then letting her scratch behind his ear.

"That's Shadow. Found him a few years back."

Emilia smiles as she leans down, petting Shadow's backside. "Well he's a very beautiful dog. I can't even remember the last time I saw one."

Daryl privately agreed with her words. After the Outbreak had occurred, the dogs had either been killed by walkers or had become feral and formed packs.

Not Shadow though. Beth had found a pregnant German Shepherd dog on a supply run and had brought her back to the Hilltop so she could be taken care of. Shadow had been among ten puppies in the litter, and each of the puppies belonged to someone at the Hilltop, Oceanside or Alexandria Safe Zone. He loved Shadow. The dog was a dear friend to him.

They entered the large manor and Emilia quietly looked around. She saw paintings on the walls next to framed photos. There was one of Daryl next to Michonne, Beth, a young brunette haired young woman, a woman with a grey pixie crop and a man with greying dark brown hair, with Jesus, Aaron and a young African-American woman.

She looked at the plaque underneath, and saw the names were engraved in the metal carefully.

 _'The Founders of the Communities. Rick Grimes, Michonne Grimes, Carol Peletier, Ezekiel, Maggie Rhee, Beth Greene, Daryl Dixon, Cyndie Owens, Paul Rovia and Aaron Rovia.'  
_  
Emilia was amazed that these people were the founders of four communities. She saw that outside there was a memorial wall for the people who died in the early days of the Outbreak, or during it by walkers or people.

Her mind drifted to her mother. She was privately grateful that she'd died long before the world had gone to hell. There was no way her mother could have survived in this harsh reality. Her mother had been kind and compassionate, unlike her husband who was a mean bastard.

She grimaced and shook her head as Daryl showed them into an office where Jesus and Aaron were waiting for them to sit down and Agnes was offered a chair and gratefully sat down.

"So, we've got houses chosen for you and you can all start working tomorrow if you like?" Jesus said kindly. The family exchanged smiles with the exception of Dante and Lucia.

"Do we have hot water and indoor plumbing? Because I am not using a fucking outhouse. They're disgusting," Lucia said contemptuously, her hazel eyes flashing with disdain. Emilia resisted the urge to slap her.

Jesus didn't take any notice of her rude behaviour and spoiled attitude. He looked at her calmly.

"Yes, we have indoor plumbing and hot water, but try not to use too much of it. We have wells that give us fresh water and we have farm animals and crops," Jesus explained calmly, Aaron sitting next to him in the chair beside him.

Dante scowled as he listened to Jesus telling them about the jobs that they were being given each to work in the Hilltop. His expression became angry, while Lucia looked horrified at the job she was being given.

"Carlos will be working as one of the farmers for the colony. Emilia you worked as an NICU doctor?" Jesus asked curiously. Emilia nodded in confirmation.

"Yeah. Went to University of Washington on a scholarship to study NICU medicine. Graduated when I was twenty-five years old and was at Sibley Memorial Hospital...when the Outbreak started," Emilia explained quietly, her voice faltering as she remembered the military shooting everyone in the hospital. Then everyone who had survived had fled and then the generators had died with all of the babies in their incubators reanimating as walkers, gasping and wheezing.

She'd put them down, unable to cope with the thought of leaving the babies who she had been caring for as walkers in the incubators to slowly rot. She had stabbed them all in the head, before burying them with the parents who had refused to leave.

Jesus nodded in understanding as did Beth. Both of them seemed to know that she'd had an unpleasant flashback. Everyone had them these days.

Emilia watched as Carlos accepted his position, before they turned their attention to Agnes. Michonne had told them that Agnes was an excellent cook and baker.

"Agnes you can work as the cook/baker. Mrs. Maitlin will show you the ropes of his everything in the kitchen goes. Dante, you'll be on the walker herd patrol team, and Lucia will be on the supply run team," Jesus said firmly, all of them nodding in agreement.

Lucia looked horrified at the thought of going on supply runs outside the walls. Dante looked livid as they both stormed out of the room.

"We won't let them cause problems. Thank you for giving us a chance. It means a lot to us," Carlos said gratefully. They nodded, and Emilia helped Agnes out of the room and to the house where Alden was showing them to.

* * *

Daryl waited until Carlos, Emilia, Agnes, Dante and Lucia had left the room, before turning to look at Aaron, Jesus and Beth. They all had mixed emotions about the García family.

He knew for a fact that Emilia, Carlos and Agnes were trustworthy and willing to pull their weight, but he wasn't sure about Dante and Lucia.

"What do you think of them, Beth and Aaron?" Jesus asked grimly, knowing that Beth was thinking hard about the new family coming to stay at Hilltop.

"Agnes, Carlos and Emilia seem trustworthy, but I'm weary about Dante and Lucia. Those two don't look too happy about being here. Have you noticed how they treat their family?" she asked seriously. Daryl grimaced.

He'd noticed it too. That Dante was a homophobic, racist asshole and that Lucia was a spoiled, selfish bitch.

"I know," Daryl states quietly. "They ain't the nicest folk, that's for sure. I'll keep an eye on them though. I can tell Emilia and Carlos put up with a lot of their shit for the grandma's sake. Maybe to just kinda keep it going. But if they try anythin' I'll watch out."

Beth nods. "Thank you, Daryl. We'll watch from here."

He nods, sighing. He didn't want to think what the two problem siblings might cause. He hoped nothing.

* * *

Once they had reached the houses they would be given, Emilia noticed how one held two people and the other held three. "These should be good for you. Decide which ones you can stay in. Tomorrow you can get yourself acquainted with everything you need," Alden says.

Emilia nods and smiles, watching him leave before turning to her siblings. Dante and Lucia were staring at the small houses in disgust. "Can we go back to the farmhouse?" Lucia mutters.

"No, we can't because Dante already fucked that up. Now you listen to me." She turns to her. "I don't care about age difference. I don't care about any fucking thing you tell me. I want you to realize that what we are being given here, is a gift. Dante fucking shot Daryl, nearly killed him, and in return for me stitching him up, he brought us safety. And you two are just going to have to fucking like it and be grateful for it. If I even hear a goddamn peep out of you two, I will both send you out on walker duty and convince the others to make you stay out there for a whole week. Do I make myself clear?" she growls angrily. They glare at her. "Answer. Me."

"Yes," Lucia says stubbornly. Dante shrugs.

"Whatever," he mutters.

"Good. Now get inside your house. We're taking the three-person to take care of abuela." They both stomp inside the house before slamming the door shut. Carlos helps Agnes inside as Emilia sighs. When did controlling her family get so damn hard?

Her mother had always done such a good job despite what she had gone through. She had always kept them in line, even when Lucia and Dante were children. Now, it was just a pure utter pit of chaos that she just wanted to step away from.

But that wasn't her job. She was the responsible one. She had to look out for them. It was just what she had to do.

Finally, she encourages herself to step back into the house they were given, looking around. It was small. She could see a small living room and a small kitchen, as well a little area for people to gather to eat. But she noticed that there were three bedrooms down a separate hallway, one for each of them. The bed inside was a king, which was fine with her. She would have been grateful for a sleeping bag.

She walks over to where Carlos was and he was taking a sip of coffee. "They left it here. I put Agnes to bed." Emilia nods before taking her own cup. "You think they might cause trouble?" he asks her, referring to the siblings.

Emilia sighs. "I don't know, hermano. I don't know. I just hope we aren't the ones to blame if they do." She sips her coffee. "Let's just hope they actually take my warning."

Carlos scoffs. "Hopefully? It'll be a miracle if they do."

Emilia sighs. "Yeah, I know."

* * *

The next morning, Emilia woke up early to go over to the medical area they had. It was a small trailer that said 'infirmary' on the outside and the door was open, so she quietly stepped in.

The first thing she saw were separate curtains. Behind them were multiple patient beds already set up with IV's and machines that they must have taken from an old hospital. As she looked deeper into the trailer she noticed there was a bunch of medicine and tools behind a glass cabinet that was under lock and key. Jesus, were there actual people here who still abused drugs when they could get their hands on them? That was just wrong.

She also spotted that there were some spare clothes for people, as well as blankets and hats. She was guessing that was for people who were in shock. There were books that lined the counters, some that looked like they had been opened recently. Medical books everywhere.

"Guess this will be my new home for a bit," she whispers. She takes a seat down in one of the chairs, flipping through a book. As she reads, a sudden voice surprises her.

"Yer up early."

She jumps out of her chair and looks up. Daryl had come into the trailer. "Jesus Christ, Daryl," she whispers, placing a hand over her heart. "You're a damn thief…didn't hear you at all." She takes a deep breath and shakes her head. "Yeah, I didn't sleep so well so I decided to come here and familiarize myself before the day started. It's a good set-up you have here. You could use a couple more beds but that will be when we can get another trailer, really. You don't have more space." She turns back to him. "Either way this is still great."

Daryl nods his head. "We try." He comes over to her. "I forgot yesterday ya'll left so quickly we didn't get to tell you the rules."

Emilia nods her head. "Right, rules. What are those here?"

"Well, we had some shit happen a while ago that we don't like that caused issues…lost some people because of it." He sighs and shakes his head. She could tell talking about it brought back a bad memory for him. "First rule is that if you have an issue with anyone in the settlements, just come to us. We don't' want there to be anymore damn alliances behind our backs or plots to fuckin' kill us. If ya have an issue, we'll take care of it. Probably Beth and Aaron because they're the most rational ones, but it'll get taken care of."

Emilia had to suppress a chuckle. She knew she could take care of her own issues if they arrived. But she also wasn't very rational either. "Alright, what's next?"

"Collecting shit. We have this one day a week where a family is assigned to come down to the manor here. We bring in the food we have, the meat we have, any clothes or other shit you might need. Ya gotta make a list before hand before ya come down so we can get it to ya. Can't take what you don't have on the list."

"Fair enough. Anything else?"

"Yeah. This ones more for protection." He nods outside. "Say ya meet someone outside an ya hit it off. If ya want to have a baby or anythin', ya gotta tell us."

Emilia's brow raises above her hairline. "That's such a random rule."

Daryl sighs. "It ain't like we're tryin' to stop people. It's just we don't have the supplies always so we wanna make sure the baby lives. Just a precaution we take. It's saved a lot of 'em over the years."

Emilia nods her head. "Well, if it's been working, I'm not going to stop you. I doubt I'll find anyone," she chuckles. "Not really that kind of girl in this world." She sighs and walks over to where he stands. "More my sister you probably have to worry about."

He looks down at her quietly. "Really?"

"Let's just say she had trouble keeping her legs closed when there were only a few guys in her life. Now, there's a lot here. I even saw her making eyes at you. So don't be surprised if she ends up being fucking stupid and hitting on everyone. It's been a while for her." She shakes her head. "Honestly it's a miracle she hasn't gotten pregnant with how many people she fucked. She actually fucked Negan all the way back." His brow raises. She sighs. "Sorry, just bitter subject for me. I didn't mean to share it."

"Nah," he states. "Don't surprise me. He's that kinda guy." Daryl shakes his head. "I still can't believe ya were married to him." Her brow raises. "I don't think 'bout it in a bad way. Ya just…seem like the opposite a him. It's weird to picture."

* * *

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	3. Chapter 3

Summary: Six years after the demise of Rick Grimes, Daryl Dixon is struggling to cope with the grief of losing the brother he had. But what happens when he stumbles upon a lone Spanish family, where one of which is related to Negan? Daryl/OC. Co – Written with WalkingPotterGirl14.

Brave New World

Chapter 3

* * *

"I know, I was young, stupid and completely in love with Negan, I didn't see his faults. I loved him, Daryl, for a long time, but it just became too much for me after he constantly lied and cheated on me with different women, even my own damn sister," she said bitterly, remembering the painful day she'd discovered Negan was sleeping with Lucia.

That had been the final straw, along with her father's treatment. She'd divorced Negan and moved on. Obviously, Negan had, but he'd screwed up his marriage with Lucille too.

"I'm sorry ya had to go through that with him. He's a sick son of a bitch," Daryl said quietly. Emilia nodded in thanks as she checked over the medical equipment and supplies that they had.

Stretchers, IV's, sutures, gauze, epi-pens, an infusion pump and an ultrasound machine. There were even surgical instruments. She smiled, but then her smile faded as she realized something that made her blood run cold.

It had been practically ten years since the Outbreak, which meant that antibiotics, painkillers, and cough medicine were expiring, not to mention condoms and the morning after pill. They needed to find someone who could make things like that.

They would need to get incubators, in case any of the women did have children, and ended up going into early labor. Emilia sighed as she looked over the medical charts and looked at Daryl.

She couldn't help but feel comfortable here at the Hilltop Colony and its little village. It reminded her of her hometown in a way. And she wanted to help it.

"Since you're here, I can give you a medical exam if you like? See how your lungs, eyes and heart are going?" she offered softly.

"That ain't really my thing."

"Well it should be." His brow raises. "I mean, you're an important person here, Daryl. Everyone expects you to be in top health. You might as well get it checked out while you are here." Daryl looked at her for a minute, before he hesitantly nodded.

Daryl sat on the medical examination bed as Emilia took out her stethoscope. He took in a deep breath. Before all this, he wouldn't have gone to the doctors, but now here he was being given a check-up by Emilia.

She'd showered, and she looked a hell of lot different than the dirty young woman with her dark curly hair pulled into a plait. She had her hair up in a ponytail, and was wearing a colourful Dios Los Muertos bandanna over her hair.

Like everyone else at the Hilltop, she had a knife in a holster on her right hip, with a green armband on her right arm to show she was with the Hilltop Colony.

"Breathe out for me, Daryl?" she asked softly. Daryl breathed out, allowing Emilia to listen to his lungs and see how they were doing. Probably not best since he smoked.

"Well, I'm amazed, but you're in perfectly good health, Daryl. Your heart, and lungs are working fine. I will say they aren't as strong as others but for someone who smokes like you do, they don't sound as bad as they could be. Let me see how that gunshot wound is doing," she said seriously. Daryl nodded and took off his leather vest, and then removed a bit of his flannel shirt as she inspected the wound.

The wound was healing up nicely, but it would leave a scar on his upper left shoulder. Daryl noticed that Emilia's hands were calloused but gentle on his skin. He had a feeling that when she was a doctor before all this, she had a lot of younger patients. Some doctors were really firm with what they touched. She definitely wasn't. And that wasn't a bad thing.

She let him put his shirt back on. He glanced at her as he put his shirt back on, and then his vest. She was writing down a list of what supplies she needed.

"Ya need anythin' in particular?" He asked quietly. Emilia nodded and pulled out a medical book on OB/GYN medical care and equipment.

"I need Axis forceps and I need an incubator for Eduardo and Lorena's baby. I was reading her chart and she's had two miscarriages. There might be a risk that she might go into early labor, so we can't really take that risk," Emilia explained concerned, as she handed him the small piece of paper, when they heard arguing outside.

It sounded like Lucia and a woman.

* * *

Lucia was furious. She'd been woken up at the crack of dawn by some brown-haired man, telling her that she was needed on a supply run for today.

She didn't want to go on this supply run, or stay in this shitty safe zone, that looked like a shithole with its trailers, RV's and houses. Not to mention the fucking animals. Pigs, dogs, fucking horses, cats, with even two cows, and two fucking goats. She hated this place. It reminded her of her grandparent's farm.

She crinkled her nose in disgust at the smell of pigs. She glared at Agnes who was cooking some bacon for the group.

"This place is a shithole, Abuela. Why can't we stay at the Alexandria Safe Zone?!" She demanded angrily, her hazel eyes flashing with resentment.

Agnes sighed quietly. She loved her four grandchildren, but Dante and Lucia were so spoiled and refused to help.

"Because the safe zone was full, Lucia, and Hilltop isn't crowded, and they need our help," she said sternly.

"And? We could have somehow gotten to share a house with someone instead of sitting here in pig shit! Did you see how many goddamn animals there are here? I can't stand it. This place is awful."

Just then, the door slammed shut and Dante stormed into the room. "There are too many damn maricones here."

"DANTE!"

"I don't care! Aye dios mio, they are everywhere! Two of them are leading this damn zone while the others are down here just kissing away! I saw two women kissing right near the gate like it's fucking okay and I can't stand that shit! I'm so tired of this." He looks over at Lucia. "Oh, they want you outside or they're going to come and get you. Captains orders."

Lucia scoffs. "Great. Another day in paradise," she mutters sarcastically. She slams the door of the house while Dante walks back to his own. Agnes runs a hand through her greying hair.

These goddamn kids. She needed to get muzzles for them. Seriously.

* * *

Emilia watched as Lucia stormed over to where she and Daryl was and saw Dante head back into his house. "No doubt they had another fit," she mutters to Daryl. "I'm never surprised anymore." Lucia walks up to the trailer and looks up at Daryl.

"Well, at least if I'm on a supply run, I get to spend more time with you," she states to him. Emilia snorts when she sees Lucia bat her eyelashes. Lucia glares at her, but what Daryl said she hadn't been expecting.

"I ain't takin' ya."

Lucia's brow raises. "What? This is my job, I'm meant to do this here, aren't I?" She asks angrily.

"Yeah, ya are. But this ain't yer run. Emilia is comin' with me for the supplies she needs to keep ya alive. And I hope ya can realize that. I'll call ya for a supply run when yer needed. Just go to the others right now." Lucia glares angrily at him before storming off. Emilia looks back over at Daryl.

"You know she'll try again, right?"

Daryl shakes his head. "That don't matter. I ain't even about that crap anyway." He looks over at Emilia. "Ya need all that stuff now? Let's go get it. There's a hospital not too far from here we can go. Shadow's sleepin' so we don't gotta take him."

Emilia nods. "Yeah, let's get the stuff now. Better to get it started than wait." Daryl heads outside and grabs his crossbow before nodding at Beth, who had just woken up. She lends them a carriage to take before speaking.

"Get back safely." Daryl nods, and the two of them head off.

* * *

When they reached the hospital, Emilia noted how the whole entire building seemed to be overgrown by the roots of the trees and plants around it. They were right. Mother nature really was taking back what it wanted. She hoped that what was inside was still workable.

"So," she says as they walk in. "I want to know more about Hilltop and your group as a whole. Am I allowed to ask questions?"

Daryl nods his head as he shoots a lone walker roaming the halls. "It wouldn't be a real democracy if ya couldn't. Go ahead."

She nods. "Well, the first thing…that girl from yesterday. The little one. Judith?" Daryl silently nods. "Beth said Michonne was her mother but…that doesn't really add up. What's her story? She seems like she's grown up in this world."

Daryl looks over at her quietly. It seemed the topic had touched something that hadn't been touched in a while. Before she could even revoke what, she said, he responded. "Dad died six years ago. She was four. All of us been raisin' her ever since. Needed someone to keep her alive."

Emilia nods sadly. "I understand…well, you all seem to have done a good job. She really knows what she's doing. She even had a katana just like her mom. Good on teaching her that. I'm assuming you taught her how to shoot like you said?" He nods. "Surprised. You should teach her how to shoot a bow and arrow with how well you use that crossbow."

"Don't know how to use a basic one."

She raises an eyebrow before smiling. "Then I'll have to teach her," she chuckles. She peeks into a hospital room and sighs. Picked clean. Nothing in it. But there were still plenty of rooms to go. "What about the rest of your group? How long have you been together in these zones?"

"I've been with a lot of 'em…for a long time. One girl ya ain't met yet but her name is Carol…been with her since the very beginnin'. Lot of 'em for years and years. It's a family, we got. Been through a lot of shit." He looks into another room and spots a few bottles of unopened medicine. That would help for now. Time to keep looking. "We've had the zones for a bit. At first it was just Alexandria, but then we saw more and more coming in. After the war with the Saviors we started getting more and more areas together to fight against him. After that, we united them. Been like that ever since."

"That's amazing," she whispers. "I'm happy you guys have such a great thing going on. I'm almost glad Dante shot you in the shoulder. Almost." She walks into another room and picks up more medicine. "We need equipment. Let's head up another floor."

The two of them go up a flight of stairs and start to look around. "What about ya?" He asks.

"What about me?"

"Ya know, yer story and all that shit. How'd ya learn the bow and arrow?"

Emilia smiles fondly. "I learned when I was a kid. I'd go to the community center in town and they'd have all these wilderness classes, but I was always the only girl to sign up for them. So, I took it with pride and just went with it. I ended up being the best in every one of them; hunting, shooting, fire building, surviving out in the woods. I was the best. Little did I know how much I would actually need those skills," she mumbles.

Daryl nodded grimly. He didn't think his hunting would come in handy either before the world went to shit.

"What about yer family?" He asks quietly. "Ya look like ya have been through a lot."

Emilia laughed bitterly at his words. Daryl had no idea how messed up her family was, even before the outbreak had happened. The García family been estranged, long before the world had gone to shit. It had been her job along with Carlos to protect Dante, Lucia and Agnes.

"Let's just say our padre wasn't a nice guy to me, Carlos and our mom. When he wasn't at work, he was either at the local bar, gambling or with some woman for a one-night stand. It was mostly our mama that took care of us, or abuela when she could. Hell, Carlos came straight back from college to help out our dad on the farm, but the thanks he got was a beating," she said bitterly, remembering the nights when her father would come home from the bar drunk and in a foul temper.

The first time she'd seen him hit her mom had been when she was six years old. She had been reading a book in the living room when he had punched her after she had apparently ruined dinner.

Asshole. She wasn't sad in the least that her father had died when this had happened. Ironically, he had died when a walker had ripped out his throat. The walker had been his latest one-night stand.

Daryl looked at her silently. She saw empathy in his eyes, as if he understood what she meant. She nodded in thanks as they reached the Neonatal Intensive Care Ward. There weren't any walkers about, but both of them were careful as Daryl opened the cupboards. They saw that aside from paracetamol on the shelves, they were empty.

Emilia found some towels and a few batteries as she searched for the incubators. Daryl walked next to her as they saw two walkers that had been patients, stumbling towards them. She took out one with her bow, while Daryl dispatched the other one with his crossbow. The bodies slumped onto the ground. One of them had been bitten on the shoulder, while the female one had died from illness.

"I'm sorry, Emilia," Daryl said meaningfully. Emilia nodded in thanks as they reached a room where incubators were still plugged into the plug sockets.

She tried not to look at the small, rotting bodies in the incubators as she and Daryl carried one that wasn't covered in blood or had the body of a baby in it. Thankfully the hallway was clear of walkers. They reached the back entrance and saw the wagon up ahead with the horses. Emilia carefully put the supplies in the back, before they started riding back to the Hilltop.

"We'll take route A. It's been clear of walkers for three weeks," Daryl said quietly. Emilia nodded as they rode the wagon on the highway. She saw how nature was overtaking everything. Plants were growing inside some of the abandoned shops, with tree roots visible under the ground. She saw a sparrow flying over to its nest as they rode past an abandoned zoo.

Sadness swam over her as she thought of the animals who were either dead or had slowly starved to death. She sighed sadly as they continued on riding.

"What do you think happened to all of the animals in the zoos, sanctuaries and veterinary clinics?" She asked finally, her mind drifting to her beloved pet cat, Tom. He had been with her since she was fifteen years old. She hoped he was alright wherever he was. She had lost him when the world went to shit.

Daryl looked at her silently. She could tell that he was trying to think of something kind to say.

"Probably a few got away. I've seen a few lions, tigers and hell, even some wolves that got loose from the zoos. They eat the walkers. Doesn't kill them when the animals eat the bodies," he explained seriously. Emilia smiled as they continued on riding back to the Hilltop in a comfortable silence.

* * *

 _Enjoy, and review :)_


	4. Chapter 4

Summary: Six years after the demise of Rick Grimes, Daryl Dixon is struggling to cope with the grief of losing the brother he had. But what happens when he stumbles upon a lone Spanish family, where one of which is related to Negan? Daryl/OC. Co – Written with WalkingPotterGirl14.

 **Thank you, everyone who has reviewed. To the people who celebrate Thanksgiving, we hope you had a wonderful holiday.**

Brave New World

Chapter 4

* * *

Carlos had started his day by harvesting the apples from the two apple trees that Hilltop had growing and put them in a basket. He worked alongside Eduardo who was friendly. He was working as a guard usually for Hilltop but because they had a short stack of people, he doubled.

His brother had stormed off earlier in a foul mood because he had gone with the herd patrol team to dispatch a small herd of thirty walkers that were coming towards Hilltop. Needless to say, he wasn't happy and had made it clear that he hated it here.

"So, did you and your family live in Virginia before this happened, Carlos?" Eduardo asked curiously. Carlos looked lost in thought as he remembered his life before this.

"Yeah, our family lived on a farm. We lost a lot of friends to the Outbreak. Our mother was long dead before this happened, but our dad got killed by a walker in the early stages," Carlos explained grimly, not mourning for his father in the least.

As far as he was concerned, Miguel Garcia could burn in hell for what he had done to him and Emilia. The old bastard had always preferred Dante and Lucia over them, spoiled them and fussed over them while making Emilia and Carlos do the chores and help on the farm.

His scars itched. He scratched his back quickly as they walked over to the indoor kitchen where Agnes and Emma were working on preparing lunch.

"Got the first batch of apples here, ready to be turned into apple butter, apple cider and apple jam. Beth wants it's all done by the next two weeks," Eduardo said pleased. The two women smiled and nodded as they heard gunshots in the distance.

Specifically, a shotgun being fired.

"Who the hell is shooting? The herd patrol only uses melee weapons, so they won't attract walkers," Eugene asked alarmed.

"Goddamnit," Carlos growls. He runs forward to the gates, dropping the basket of apples. He quickly steps out and saw that Dante had his shotgun in hand, aiming at a group of walkers. Another shot rang out. Once it was done, Carlos ripped the gun from the man's hands.

"The fuck?!"

"You listen to me," Carlos growls. "They told you rules! You're supposed to follow those goddamn rules. With your shotgun, that could have just attracted a whole herd to us! You need to once think about others!" He slams the handle of a knife into Dante's hand. "Use this. You'll need it. End of discussion."

He storms back inside with the shotgun feeling Dante's overwhelming glares on his back. "Everything alright?" Eugene asks.

"It's fine." He sighs and walks back towards the mansion. "One of the leaders in there? I have to talk to them about Dante." Eduardo nods.

"Pretty sure Beth is. She's upstairs."

Carlos nods. He needed to let her know what the hell was up with Dante. It was never-ending.

* * *

As soon as she stepped inside the trailer, Lucia felt like she was in heaven. She took back all of the supplies that she knew she would need and even stole some extra food for herself. The rest of these people looked like they had plenty. She was so sick of people trying to control her.

"What the hell are you doing?"

Lucia spins around to see one of the residents glaring at her. "Who the hell are you?" She mutters.

"Kelly."

"Well, Kelly. I'm just collecting my portions, is all. I'm new here."

"Portions aren't-"

"Listen here, you bitch." Lucia takes out her knife. "I'm living in a hell hole here. This is the worst place I could imagine myself being stuck in safely right now. So, I am going to take this food and these supplies and be damn happy, and there is not a damn thing you will do because I will fucking end you," she growls.

Kelly raises her hands in the air. "Just leave." Lucia nods and then heads back to her house, slamming the door behind her. Kelly shakes her head. "Fucking bitch."

* * *

As Daryl and Emilia rode back to Hilltop, Emilia spotted smoke rising from the distance. She quietly reaches over and taps Daryl's shoulder, showing him the way towards the smoke. "What is that?"

"Could be trouble."

"Could also be people who need help." Daryl gives her a look. The look she got all the time from everyone in her family. She gave too many people credit, but she couldn't help it that she felt the need to help people. "Look, I know it's crazy, but those people could seriously be in danger. It's worth a shot, please? If they are, I'll take total responsibility."

Daryl looks at her for a moment longer before rolling his eyes. Then, he turns the horses in the direction of the scent of smoke. Emilia smiles a bit and follows the smell, guiding them through trees. Once they turn a corner, she spots it.

There were blown down gates and houses that looked like they had been set on fire. Some were still burning. The towns were riddled with blood and gore and there were walkers that were tumbling around here and there. No herds, not yet, anyway. But there were enough that Daryl knew it wasn't wise to go in there.

"Jesus, someone fucking nuked this place," he mumbles. Emilia steps off the carriage. "The fuck are you doing?"

"I told you. People might need help." A walker stumbles up to her and she stabs it in the head. "You stay here and guard the food. I'll look around." Before he could even protest, she was already walking down the street. Daryl curses but sits back. Goddamn woman.

* * *

While he stayed back there, Emilia looked into each and every house that wasn't on fire. Burned bodies lay inside, some completely torn apart by walkers or by something else. She kept looking and looking, feeling her heart drop each time. Whoever had done this had wiped them out good.

"…help!"

Emilia's brow furrows as she looks around. There was a banging coming from an underground storage unit from one of the houses. It was on the door. Emilia quietly walks over and listens again.

"Help! Please, somebody!"

Emilia looks down to see that the whole entire door had been locked using a crowbar. She pulls it out and rips open the door, looking down at what was inside. She felt her heart sink.

In there were two kids. One looked like she was maybe around Judith's age, maybe a little younger. The other one was no more than a couple years old. And looked ill.

"Please, we were locked down here and they took…took and killed everyone and my brother got sick, but he's not bit and…and I don't know what to do," the girl sobs. "Everyone's gone."

Before Emilia could say anything to comfort her, the young girl pulled up her left shirt sleeve up, revealing a large scratch that had been made from a walker. She felt her heart drop.

"Please, promise me that you and that man will look after my baby brother, please?" she pleaded imploringly, her light blonde hair falling in her eyes. Emilia nodded sadly.

She pulled her knife out and sat by the young girl's side as she succumbed to the infection. She stabbed her in the back of the head, before surveying the scene. The walkers were no danger, but she certainly couldn't stay here long with how this boy was.

Jesus Christ, how the hell had walkers been able to breach the walls of this safe zone? It was like everyone inside the walls had turned and bitten the other residents.

She shook her head, and stabbed the young girl in the head, before looking around for Daryl. Fuck, she'd told him to stay in the wagon. Idiot, she was. She only meant for him to watch the supplies but there were a lot more walkers than she had seen.

She noticed a few walkers starting to enter the safe zone, probably attracted to the noise that had been going on. She pulled out her bow and fired an arrow at the walker nearest to her, seeing it collapse on the floor.

"Emilia, c'mon!" Daryl yelled quickly, covering her and the little boy who was clinging to her tightly, as if his life depended on it. She hurried over, still holding onto the little boy.

She looked at where the body of the young girl laid on the grass, partially hidden from the walkers. There wasn't anything she could do, as there were too many of the monsters. Fuck, she hadn't even asked the girl what the boy's name was. Maybe he could speak once he felt better.

She quickly got into the wagon and held onto the little boy who looked around tiredly. Some of the walkers started stumbling away from them.

Emilia sighed in relief and looked at Daryl apologetically. She'd pretty much gone against him and put the two of them at risk, as Carlos would say. Dante and Lucia would just say mean things for her saving someone.

"How old is that little boy?" Daryl asked quietly. Emilia sighed sadly and glanced at the sleeping face of the boy.

"Three or four. His sister got scratched by a walker and asked me to take him back with us. I put the sister down after she fell unconscious. I'm sorry that I put us at risk," Emilia apologized ashamed. Daryl had every right to be angry with her.

Daryl shook his head at her words. He just didn't like the fact that Emilia had gone by herself into the abandoned safe zone.

"The wagon wasn't gonna go anywhere," he says to her quietly. "Just next time, let me come with ya. Never know what the hell can be in these places. After we get this kid checked over, we're gonna have to check that safe zone in case it was done by a group," Daryl said grimly, as they saw a few walkers in the distance.

He took care of the first few, while Emilia dealt with the last walkers. They found a birthing center. It didn't look like anyone had thought to scavenge this place when things had gotten bad. They stopped the wagon, and Emilia gave the little boy a bottle of water that he drank greedily. She felt his forehead and quickly deduced that he hadn't had any fluids for the last three days, which was why he was so ill.

"They might have the forceps in this clinic. Do you want to check it out after we come back from the Hilltop?" she asked quietly. Daryl nodded silently, and they rode back to Hilltop.

Kal let them through the wooden gates, as they rode the wagon into the community, before getting out. Daryl got the horses out, while Emilia saw to the young boy in the medical trailer.

She hooked him up to an IV, so he could have fluids and knew Enid could do this. She had learnt from Siddiq about medicine. She had seen her once and saw how young she was but had plenty of ability. She looked sadly at the boy who had lost his sister and went to join Daryl.

"The kid gonna be alright?" Daryl asked quietly, his piercing blue eyes regarding her with concern. Emilia smiled faintly as she stood next to him after washing her hands.

"He's dehydrated and exhausted, but he should pull through. I had to put down his sister, Daryl. She'd been scratched and was in denial," Emilia said finally. Daryl looked at her sadly as they saw Dante heading into the house he shared with Lucia, holding a bottle of whisky.

'God, her brother had to drink' she thought bitterly as they started unloading the wagon of the supplies that they had managed to find at the hospital. The blankets and towels were taken to be placed with bedding and sheets, while the incubator was placed in the trailer next to the medical trailer. The medicine was locked up in the medicine cabinet.

"You'd have to be pretty stupid if you want to have kids in a world like this. I mean who the hell in their right mind would have babies? They're only a burden and will bring down walkers onto you," Lucia asked annoyed as she went to the house she shared with Dante. "You should have just left the kid!" she yells out at Emilia before slamming the door. Alden sighs before walking over to the cabin.

"Hey, Emilia…Beth is wandering if she could talk to you, Agnes, Daryl and Carlos about...Dante?" Alden asked quietly, looking at her apologetically. Emilia knew her eldest brother had done something stupid.

"Thanks, Alden. I'll be right there," she said quietly, dread pooling in her stomach as she wondered what Dante had done.

What if they all had to leave?

* * *

Daryl sat in the office with Jesus and Aaron as Beth explained what had happened while he and Emilia had been on the supply run to the hospital.

"Dante was using his shotgun on the walkers even though he was supposed to use his knife only. Carlos stopped him, but that brought more walkers to this area than we usually have. And that's not the only problem," Beth said grimly, looking at Daryl.

"What else happened?" Daryl asked quietly, Shadow sitting by his feet contently as he chewed on a bone.

"Kelly and Lucia got into a fight. It got really violent. Lucia told her to go fuck herself and that Connie was a liability as she's deaf and can't hear. That didn't go over too well with Magna and her group," Jesus explained unhappily.

Emilia runs her hands through her hair. "Did Carlos stop him or her from doing this stuff?" She asks them quietly.

"Carlos was there to stop Dante but he wasn't for Lucia. We also got word that Lucia stole some supplies too, but we're still looking into that," Jesus says quietly.

Emilia looks back at them from where she sat. "I'm sorry. I didn't think they would already cause so much trouble their first day…I thought they'd fucking listen, but they don't. They never do." She takes a deep sigh. "I didn't even let you finish."

Beth shakes her head. "It's alright. It's a lot to process that this is already happening. But it needs to be said." She looks over at Jesus. "We can already tell that you and Carlos will be helping out a lot. From one day with you here we doubled our apples due to Carlos and have more medical supplies due to you. Agnes has even helped through her condition. But your two other siblings did nothing. If this kind of behaviour continues, we're going to have to move them somewhere else."

Emilia looks up quietly. "To where?"

"Another safe zone," Jesus states. "One where...more action is taken. At Hilltop we try really hard not for conflicts like this to start because it's a smaller settlement and we don't have the resources necessary for a trial or for a jailing. For more difficult people…they usually go to Alexandria where-"

"Negan is," Emilia finishes, looking up. "Because that's the only cell?" Beth nods. "I'm sorry that this happened. Really, I am. I wish that I could somehow stop them." She stands up. "But if you want me to be honest? They might do better there."

Daryl's brow furrows as he looks over at the others. Aaron looks at her confused. "What do you mean?"

"Can this stay between us?" Daryl nods.

"Kind of stuff always does."

She nods before speaking. "My sister is the epitome of a spoiled brat. She has never worked a day in her life and has always had everything planned out for her. My brother is a fucking asshole with barely a redeemable bone in his body. He's racist to other people who aren't Spanish, or even Mexican sometimes, and he's homophobic. I don't know if you two saw, but he-"

"Trust me, we saw," Jesus states.

Emilia looks at him apologetically. "I'm sorry, but that just shows how they're both unfit to be here." She looks outside. "I like it here. My brother likes it here. My grandmother likes it here. I know that we can do well with what we have because we have learned how to be thankful for the little things. To have a roof over our heads and have food on our plates. But they only know recklessness and chaos. So, could I ask you a favour, instead?"

Beth crosses her arms across her chest. "This took a surprising turn, but sure, go ahead."

"Bring them there." She points outside. "That woman. Michonne, right? She's fucking scary. I can tell she wouldn't take any kind of shit like this, right?" Daryl nods. He knew Michonne the most out of all of them. "Put them there and have them fuck up. She'll lock them in that cell with Negan and maybe he'll scare them straight. They're my family, I don't want them out on the streets…but if all they're going to do is cause trouble here, then they need a lesson. And maybe sending them there could teach them that."

The four leaders exchange a look. Beth turns back to her. "We'll have to talk it over with Carlos once we bring him in, but we'll get back to you. For now, you're free to go."

Emilia silently nods and leaves. She knew this was what she had to do.

* * *

Later on, Emilia sat at the bedside of the little boy who had just woken up. She noticed he had beautiful blue eyes and a messy mop of light-ish brown hair. His cheeks were a rosy red. She had no idea how he had survived.

"Hi, sweet pea," she says softly. "How are you feeling?"

"Okay," the boy mumbles. "Where's my sister?"

Emilia looks at him sadly. "Your sister is somewhere better now, sweetheart. You're here with us and you'll be safe. She asked us to take care of you." She helps him sit up and she hands him a glass of water. The young boy quietly drinks. "Can you tell me your name?"

He was quiet for a moment before replying. "Liam," he mumbles.

"Liam," Emilia repeats. The name fit him. "Well, Liam, you're safe now with the Hilltop community. Do you know what that means?" He shakes his head. "You have one giant family looking out for you!" She tickles his side and the little boy laughs. Emilia smiles and talks again. "Can you tell me how old you are?"

"Four," he says, a little prouder this time, holding up four fingers. Emilia chuckles.

"I can see. Well, you're the best four-year-old I ever met." The boy smiles. At that moment, the door opens and Shadow trots in. Liam's eyes light up as he reaches over. "Liam, this is Shadow. He's a big puppy-dog."

"Puppy," the little boy whispers. Shadow licks his hand and lets him pet him while Emilia steps towards the door. Daryl was waiting on the step, taking a peek inside. Emilia raises an eyebrow and chuckles.

"He's awake. His name is Liam." Daryl nods as she steps outside to talk to him. "He's also four. Seems to be proud of it." Daryl chuckles a bit. Kids were proud of the little things.

He looks back at her and sighs. "'Bout earlier. I didn't mean to be-"

"Daryl, you don't have to apologize. I'm new to the group. I'm still trying to earn my keep. I shouldn't have gone off alone and left you by yourself." She holds out a fist bump. "For now, on, we go out together, we stay together." Daryl scoffs at her fist bump, but there was no way she was going to let him leave her hanging. So, she kept it up.

Eventually, he rolls his eyes again (for the second time that day), and then fist bumps her. She smiles. "Deal." She nods her head before suddenly, they heard fighting from one of the houses towards the end of street.

Daryl and Emilia rush over to see Lucia yelling at a poor Asian girl who just trying to go to her trailer. Yumiko, Daryl had told her. That was the Asian girl's name.

* * *

 _Enjoy, and review :)_


	5. Chapter 5

Summary: Six years after the demise of Rick Grimes, Daryl Dixon is struggling to cope with the grief of losing the brother he had. But what happens when he stumbles upon a lone Spanish family, where one of which is related to Negan? Daryl/OC. Co – Written with WalkingPotterGirl14.

 _Apologies for the delay, been busy but I hope you all enjoy the latest chapter :)_

Brave New World

Chapter 5

* * *

"Hey, hey! Break it up, Lucia!" Emilia said angrily, dragging her sister away who glared at Yumiko. She looked infuriated before speaking to Daryl as Lucia gave her the finger.

"Fuck you, you fucking lesbian freak!" Lucia screamed disgusted, spitting at the ground where Yumiko stood.

"What the hell is wrong with you? What did Yumiko do to you?" She asked angrily, glaring at her older sister in frustration. Her sister was being such a selfish bitch and it was infuriating her.

"She was trying to take some of my stuff that I specifically found on that stupid supply run! I found it, she fucking didn't!" Lucia said defiantly and slammed the front door harshly.

Emilia closed her eyes for a minute. She counted to ten before walking over to where Daryl was talking to Yumiko. She felt so ashamed of what her sister and brother had done.

"I'm gonna have to tell Beth, Aaron and Jesus what just happened, Emilia. I'm sorry, but they're gonna have to leave and go to Alexandria." Daryl said quietly, Emilia nodded sadly and went to go check on Liam, giving Yumiko an apologetic look.

* * *

Dinner that night was tense with Agnes having cooked Enchiladas con Chile rojo, which had been made from the tomato's that they'd been given, dried red chili peppers and corn. Carlos ate his food silently, and he knew Emilia was angry with Dante and Lucia over how they had acted. He loved his grandmother, but she still felt that Dante and Lucia would grow up and contribute to the group.

He knew they wouldn't change. They felt the world owed them and that they could just sit on their asses all day long. God bless Agnes, but she was in denial about her eldest grandchildren.

He sighed and finished eating his dinner, before taking the plate into the kitchen, and washing it. Dante hadn't spoken to any of them and was having a third glass of whisky.

"Beth, Jesus, Aaron and Daryl want to talk with you and Lucia in the morning, Dante. They're not happy with how you've been acting today or yesterday," Carlos said coldly, and bid goodnight to Emilia and Agnes before going on watch.

He needed to get away from his two siblings, before he ended up doing something that he regretted.

* * *

Emilia had gone back to the medical trailer to check up on Liam. One of the women, who had been forced to be one of Negan's wives, had taken him in and was bonding with him.

"So, you were married to Negan too, Emilia?" Frankie asked quietly. They watched Liam happily tucking into the meal of venison steak, potatoes, and some cornbread.

"Unfortunately yes. Really married. I was married to him long before the world was overrun by the dead. We were married for four years when I was extremely young. I finally had enough when he broke too many promises to me and he wasn't there for me when I needed him the most," Emilia admitted honestly, her dark brown eyes lost in thought.

"Was he an asshole before this?" Frankie asked curiously. Emilia nodded as she lit up a cigarette and inhaled the familiar smell of tobacco. She only smoked when she was stressed or feeling angry.

"Oh yeah. That hasn't changed in the least, but he was never cruel to people, or...intimidated people before this. I can't believe he fucking let a man line up and gun down children over the age of ten years old. I know damn well Lucille would be disgusted," she said bitterly, and swallowed thickly.

Her hands slid over her flat stomach, a memory of it being round and feeling a life grow inside her, before it had been taken away from her. It was one of the reasons why she had divorced Negan, after finding out he was sleeping with her sister of all people.

"Did you have kids with him?" Frankie asked softly, her eyes sympathetic.

Emilia looks over at her silently. "Almost did. Lost it at the last second." Before Frankie could apologize, Emilia waved her hand in dismissal. "Don't. I'm happy I didn't have his kid. It just would have been a constant reminder of what had happened between us."

Frankie was silent, but Emilia could tell a part of her agreed. She could still remember that day, the moment she decided to leave that bastard.

* * *

 _It was late at night when the door slams shut. Emilia jumps in her seat but only for a second, staying at the foot of the chair she sat in. "Why the hell don't I smell anything?" Negan's voice boomed throughout the house. "Swear to God, Garcia, if there's nothing cooking I-" He suddenly comes into the living room, seeing the rolling suitcase. "Oh, what's this show?"_

 _"I'm leaving, Negan." She stands up, grabbing the suitcase by the handle. "I don't know what caused me to love you so long ago but all I know is that it's not here now. I lost the only thing I truly cared about because of you. I'm not staying in this house for one more goddamn second."_

 _Negan laughs. "Sweetheart, I do the kicking out, not you."_

 _Emilia walks over to the door and glares at him. "Then why am I one choosing to leave?" She opens the door and storms outside. He tries to grab her arm, but she yanks it free and punches him squarely across the nose. He holds it in pain. "Don't even fucking try. I know you've been sleeping with other women too, one being my goddamn sister. You can go fuck yourself, Negan. Like the pig you are. I'm done."_

 _She walks over to her car and throws the suitcase in there. As he comes up to the car, she locks the door and starts up the engine. He bangs on the glass window. "You can't fucking leave me!" He snaps at her._

 _"Goodbye." She pulls out of the driveway and heads down the street, letting out a slow, deep breath. He was yelling at her until she turned the corner._

 _For once, for the first time in years, a part of her felt free._

* * *

Emilia swallows and puts out her cigarette before nodding at Frankie. "I'm heading to bed. You got this?" Frankie smiles and nods.

"Don't worry. He'll be safe with me." Emilia nods and then leaves, happy someone was willing to take care of the boy. She needed sleep with a medication. Maybe a glass of wine if she could find one.

Her demons haunted her. She just wanted some rest. Better for someone else to take care of the child for now.

* * *

The next morning, Emilia watched silently as Lucia and Dante come out of the mansion. Lucia seemed to be smirking. "You two look oddly happy," Emilia mutters.

"Because we were just promoted to Alexandria and you three have to stay in this hick town," Lucia says with a grin. "I swear, Dante and I always had higher standards in mind. You just want to roll around in pig shit all day."

Emilia stands up angrily, her hands balled into fists. It was taking every ounce of self-control she had to not punch her in her little face. "You need to shut the fuck up," Emilia glares. Carlos comes out at that moment, hearing the conversation.

"The hell is going on?" He asks.

Dante smirks. "Nothing, brother. Just finally a better place than what you have here. Can finally shoot my damn gun."

"Ya ain't shootin' shit."

The family looks over to see Daryl come out of the mansion. He had overheard their conversation. He walks over to them quietly. Dante's brow raises before he scoffs at the man.

"You're not the boss of me."

Emilia snorts. Jesus, how old was this guy?

Daryl was calm. "Actually, I still am," he states. "No matter where ya go, there's gonna be a shit ton of people like me watchin' ya, so I know what ya do. And this 'move' to Alexandria ain't a vacation. Yer gettin' yer weapons taken away and being placed under house arrest until ya can wisen the fuck up and stop causin' fights."

Dante glares at him while Lucia growls in outright shock. "We need those to protect ourselves!"

"What, like yer the one doin' protectin'?" Daryl asks. "I've only seen ya for a few days and ya already have done nothin' to help us. Yer useless here."

"Don't talk to my sister like that," Dante growls, stepping forward. Daryl glances over at Emilia and Carlos. They did nothing. This was just what Dante did. They were used to it and it was sad.

"Ya tellin' me how to talk to yer family when ya don't even talk to them right," Daryl states. "I can talk to ya all I want because yer useless too. Ya brought in more walkers than we needed, just like how ya lost yer place by shootin' me."

"I should have killed you," Dante hisses.

"Ya wouldn't have even gotten close," Daryl states, his hands in his pockets.

"Wanna fucking bet?!" Dante challenges, and then swings his fist before anyone could see what was happening.

Emilia watched in shock as Daryl dodged his punch, and punched him back. A brawl broke out between the two men. She ran over towards them to try and break up the fight, which was getting out of hand.

"Dante, enough! Stop this, Dante!" she said pleadingly. Dante turned his temper on her and punched her hard across the right side of her face, which caused her to stumble. She tumbled to the back of the stairs, holding her cheek.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Frankie yelled outraged, sending Liam to get Beth, Aaron and Jesus. Daryl punched Dante hard across the nose, knocking him on his ass.

He turned around and saw a pale faced Emilia. She was wiping blood from her nose and the right side of her face was an angry red. Just looking at the mark sparked another amount of rage on him. Daryl wasn't a damn angel, but he didn't fucking stand back when someone like fucking Dante hits his own sister.

"Ya exiled from the Hilltop Community, Dante. And if I ever see ya lay another hand on Emilia, then I won't just beat ya next time!" Daryl warned menacingly and had two men drag him to the wagon they had. Lucia glares at them before heading towards the wagon herself.

"Millie..." Carlos said quietly, stepping towards her in concern, but Emilia shook her head warningly. She started hurrying towards the medical trailer, trying not to break down in front of these people or her own brother.

Goddamnit. What the hell had she done to make Dante hate her so much ever since the Outbreak had happened ten years ago? She wiped her eyes, before grabbing a flannel and putting it under the cold tap. She places it gingerly on her throbbing cheek.

She sat down in a chair and began finishing off the charts, so she could update everyone's medical history. Harlan Carson had done a good job of keeping everyone's medical history updated before he had died. She had a feeling that Negan had something to do with that.

She decided to keep busy and offered Nabila a warm smile as she showed her into the trailer. The woman didn't ask questions about what had happened, just laid down on the medical examination couch. Emilia checked to see how the baby was doing.

"Is my baby alright?" Nabila asked worriedly. Emilia gave her a reassuring smile as she turned on the Doppler fetal monitor. The sound of the baby's heartbeat seemed to comfort the woman. Nabila smiled happily.

"He looks perfectly fine. Got all his toes and fingers. You and Jerry are having a little boy together," she said softly. "As long as you keep doing what you're doing, you should be okay." Nabila's dark brown eyes streamed with tears.

"And... there's nothing wrong with him? Not like with the other two pregnancies?" Nabila asked anxiously. Emilia sat down next to her and squeezed her right hand tightly.

"Your baby boy is perfectly fine. The last two miscarriages were caused by stress and not enough food for yourself and the little ones. You and Jerry are going to have a beautiful son in two months' time, Nabila," she reassured. Nabila smiled as Emilia printed an image of the scan and gave it to her.

She wiped the gel off her stomach and said goodbye to her. She saw Liam helping Frankie with the gardening. He was already getting back to a normal little boy.

Emilia sighs and softly smiles to herself, before she finished writing the charts.

* * *

Daryl had gone in search of Emilia and found her in the medical trailer with the door open. She was tidying up and had put everyone's charts away. He had to admit the trailer looked a lot more organized than it did before since she came to the community.

"Hey," he speaks up. She looks over. "How are ya?" He asked quietly. He could see the right side of her face was turning dark purple, from where Dante had punched her earlier on. Fucking asshole.

"I'm ok. This isn't the first time I've been punched, and it certainly won't be the last time. Honestly, it doesn't even hurt that much anymore. How's your shoulder?" She asked softly. Daryl lets out a quiet sigh and showed her the wound. There had been a part of him that thought she might have been crying but she was perfectly fine.

She was so used to things like this happening. And that part pissed him off a bit.

The wound was healing up nicely. It was just leaving a faded pink scar from where Dante had shot him with the rifle.

She smiled at him, as they sat down on the front steps and watched the others go around doing their jobs. She saw Carlos in the distance, helping Beth with a horse.

A part of her wondered how the transfer was going at Alexandria. Another one just wanted to not give a fuck.

* * *

Lucia was furious as she glared at Michonne. The woman had informed her and Dante that they would be under house arrest until they calmed down. Carlos hadn't been lying. He had been telling the straight-up truth.

"You can't take our weapons away! What if there's an attack by other people or a herd of walkers attack us!" Lucia said outraged. Dante spat at the ground where Jesus stood.

"Then you should have thought about that before you decided to hoard some of the supplies for yourself and when Dante acted recklessly and nearly got everyone killed," Michonne said firmly, her tone leaving no room for argument.

Lucia looked furiously. She angrily stormed into the house, while Dante helped himself to the wine that was in the kitchen. He felt pissed off that he and Lucia were under house arrest.

It wasn't fair.

Why did they have to be punished just because they didn't want to live in a shithole that had animals running around? It wasn't fair. She was bitter. Quietly, she thought of Negan then.

He was alive, and she wandered if she could visit him? She smirked as she remembered the handsome but crude young man who had been her brother-in-law.

Emilia was useless. She couldn't stand her little sister. She always just wanted to help people and make them happy no matter what. She couldn't count how many times her little sister had almost died trying to save someone that couldn't even help them in return. That kind of thinking gets people killed. Lucia was the smart one in this family.

"Dante?" He looks over at her, already finishing a glass of wine. "You know who else is under arrest here?"

"Emilia's ex?" She nods her head. "Guy you fucked, right?" She smirks and nods again. "You gonna get yourself in trouble again?"

"No, not trouble. Just…fun." She looks outside. "Maybe a little bit more fun than we predicted being here."

* * *

Emilia sighs as she sits away from the fire pit. Beth had told her that every once and a while the people here would gather around and talk in the fire pit that was in Hilltop. She decided she'd rather just stay away from the light for a bit.

The bruise was a purplish colour now. It was going to be gone eventually but that didn't change the fact that it was still ugly. A part of her really wished that she had punched Dante back, but she always tried so hard not to get physical with her family. They were her family, after all. If everyone else died, who else would she have?

Probably only Carlos, at this point.

The young woman sighs and runs her hands through her hair as she watched the community interact. One of them was playing a guitar while some of the others ate. People were talking. She noticed how Carlos was talking to Beth and he said something that made her laugh.

Emilia rolls her eyes. Bless her brother's soul but he was not good at hiding his flirting. The moment she saw him look at Beth she knew he liked how she looked. He was cute though. Carlos was the normal son out of everyone. He actually treated women with respect and equals. He had been with someone at the start, but she had gotten bit.

She wondered briefly what the life of her friends were now. Of the people she had come to know. Were they dead like most? Or were they somehow surviving not that far from here? Could they possibly be in one of the communities that are a part of the Militia and yet she doesn't know?

So many questions. And she wished she could answer them all.

"Don't like fires?" She looks up at the voice and watches as Daryl sits down next to her. "Ain't really a people person, either."

"It's not really that. Usually I'm always down for a kumbaya and a song," she jokes around, looking at the ground. Daryl looks over at her and spots a flash of her bruise in the dark from the flames of the fire. He scoffs, shaking his head.

"I shoulda beat him harder."

"Dar-"

"Emilia, I don't care what ya say." He turns back to her. "Ya can't defend what he did and say yer 'used to it.' This is a different world, that shit shouldn't even fly. I wish ya didn't stop us." She was quiet. He was right.

There really was nothing she could say that could defend her siblings. They really just weren't pleasant people.

"I noticed Carlos likes Beth a little," she says to him quietly. "She looks like his type."

Daryl nods his head. "Beth's a survivor. Got shot in the head once and pulled through it. Think now though she likes Carlos as a worker. Ya know he's been pulling the most out of farmin'? Ain't even been here for two weeks."

Emilia smiles. "That's who we are, the two of us. Overachievers." She looks at the ground again. "We always tried so hard to impress the people who were supposed to love us. Our mother was always so proud of me becoming a doctor, but everyone else…it was always a constant battle. I feel like from the moment I was born, automatically, I was hated by my dad. It's just always been like that."

He looks over at her silently. "Ya and yer brother are close, huh?"

Emilia nods, a bittersweet smile coming to her face. "We had to be. Only way we could protect ourselves is protecting one another." She chuckles a bit. "I even told him one day 'when I get married, I want you to walk me down the aisle, not dad.' And he had actually agreed. I had never been happier. Not like that's gonna happen soon anyway." She rolls her eyes. "I think love is so stupid in this world."

He looked surprised. "Why?" He asks her. She turns to him before sighing.

"Alright, stupid is the wrong word to say. I feel…I don't know. Everyone just always gets so close and then someone always fucks up and then someone dies. I've barely kept my family alive these past ten years and I love all of them deeply. Even to an extent those two fuckers. They're still my family, I still have to look out for them, you know?"

Daryl lets out a low sigh. "I know what ya mean," he mumbles. His mind drifts off to Merle. That was almost the same situation. Except Merle didn't seem as bad as Dante.

"But love…that's not just family. That's giving yourself to someone completely. Letting them see all the ins and outs of your personality and who you are. When you lose someone, you love…it's like you die along with them. At a certain point, you can hardly remember who you were before you met them." She looks back over at the fire pit, her eyes scanning over the couples that were there. "Like, look at them. They are so happy, but all I can think about is 'what if someone dies? What's going to happen to the other?' It's so morbid…but I'm so terrified of stuff like that."

She looks up at him and found him looking at the ground. Emilia awkwardly laughs and rubs the back of her neck.

"Sorry…that was a tangent."

"Nah, it's fine." He looks over at her. "I get it. I was like that at the beginning of this too. Didn't want to talk to no one else." He looks over at the group. "I ain't ever found love, guess if that's what you wanna call it. But the idea of losin' some people I care 'bout…scares me too."

For the first time, she realized he was being vulnerable. A part of her said that this was probably rare for him to talk about. "Well, at least you have Shadow," she says softly, trying to lighten the mood.

Daryl snorts, a sound that she didn't think he could make. "Yeah, big fluffy bastard. Look at 'em." She turns her head to where Shadow was licking one of the kids, causing them to giggle. "He's a baby. Great guard dog but the moment he warms up to ya? Yer gonna end up gettin' licked all over."

Emilia smiles, laughing a bit. The two sit together in a comfortable silence watching the group, before she turns to him. "Can I ask you a question?" He nods. "You said you're not really a people person but yet you're here talking with me. How come?"

He shrugs before looking over at her. "Don't know. Yer…different."

She snickers. "Different? How?"

"I dunno," he replies. "Just are. Ya got this…attitude about the world. All these people in here always think positive. That now that the Saviors are gone, ain't nothin' bad gonna happen. Ya ain't even been here all this time and ya can see bullshit from a mile away. Not a lot of people are like that. Like me, I guess." He shrugs again. "Plus, ya got a good heart."

She sighs. "You have no idea the things I've had to do to keep my family safe, Daryl."

"So have I," he states back. "We've all had to do bad shit. Doesn't change the fact that we wanna do good." He looks over at Liam. "Like that boy. Even if it was stupid goin' in there alone, ya saved him. He's alive because of ya when ya could have just let him die like most people would. That's a good heart."

* * *

 _Enjoy, and review :)_


	6. Chapter 6

Summary: Six years after the demise of Rick Grimes, Daryl Dixon is struggling to cope with the grief of losing the brother he had. But what happens when he stumbles upon a lone Spanish family, where one of which is related to Negan? Daryl/OC. Co – Written with WalkingPotterGirl14.

Brave New World

Chapter 6

* * *

"Then it means that you've got a good heart too, Daryl. You do a lot for the group too. You're a good man," she said softly, looking at him seriously with a kind smile.

There was a ghost of a smile on his face at her words as he looked at Dog who was playing with some of the kids. He offered her a plate with some chocolate chip cookies on the plate.

She accepted gratefully and smiled at him. They sat in a comfortable silence. Emilia realized that as she sat there, Daryl was the first person she felt truly comfortable around in this area. What a twist. The man her family almost killed was becoming a friend.

* * *

The next morning, Daryl was already awake and dressed. He grabbed his crossbow to go and check on his snares, and hopefully get more meat put in the smokehouse before winter came.

So far, they had two deer that had been caught and were now in the smokehouse, along with hog bacon that had all been cured with salt. Before taking it back to the Hilltop, he usually had to check it in case it had worms or had been bitten.

He went to make himself a cup of coffee and as he stepped outside. He hadn't been the hugest coffee drinker before the world went to shit, but now he knew he needed a little bit of it to start the day. He saw Emilia sitting on a chair outside the medical trailer. She was sitting under the shade and reading a book on medicine as she ate her breakfast.

"Going on a hunt?" Beth asked softly. He nodded quietly.

"Yeah, need to fill up the smokehouse before winter sets in and I'm gonna see if we can find anymore supplies," he explained quietly, looking over at where Emilia was.

Beth nodded. She remembered what Bertie had suggested to her last night, about how to keep the mice and rats away from their food stores. Especially the corn, flour, and sugar, not to mention the coffee beans they'd found.

"Do you think you could find a few cats for us, if you can? We're having a mice infestation and putting traps down, but if we had some cats, they might be the best option," Beth asked finally. Daryl nodded and wondered where he could find a cat.

He'd figure it out.

* * *

Emilia only had two patients today. Alden, who had burned his left hand after briefly forgetting that the hammer he'd been making was still boiling hot. Luckily the burns aren't severe, but she tells him to come to her later, so she can change his bandages and clean the burns.

She gives him painkillers and he thanks her, before Eduardo and Lorena came to visit her. She listened to the baby's heartbeat, and it sounded strong. She looked at the heavily pregnant woman.

"Have you been having contractions?" She asked softly, knowing that the woman was nine months pregnant and due to give birth any day now.

"Not yet, but I have been getting Braxton Hicks contractions, and the baby's been lively," Lorena confided nervously, as Eduardo held her hand reassuringly.

"Well just to be careful. Don't do any heavy lifting. If you do feel like you're in labor, please tell me and I'll help you have your beautiful little girl," she said reassuringly. The couple smile at her words of comfort.

* * *

Daryl had checked his snares and saw that he'd caught two fat male rabbits. He and the hunters tried not to over hunt too many. It would screw up the ecosystem. It was better to be a little hungry sometimes rather than eat up all of the food out there.

He went back to the Hilltop, before skinning them and giving them to Arno who was the community's butcher. He nodded at Daryl, as he went to tell Beth that he was going on a run, and to look for some cats.

"You off on another run?" Emilia asked curiously. Beth was standing next to her, as Beth had come in to get her had fixed. She had slipped on a knife while cutting up some food.

"Yeah. We've been having a mice problem, so Beth wants me to find some cats." Emilia finishes up wrapping Beth's hand before looking at him.

"If you want, I could come. It's been a slow day here."

Daryl shakes his head. "Nah, stay here. Ain't a hard mission. Sides, somethin' could go wrong that they need you here for." Emilia sighs but nods as Beth squeezes his shoulder. "I'll be fine," he states to her. Beth rolls her eyes.

"I know." She heads back to the mansion while Daryl turns to Emilia.

"Seriously though, stay safe," she says to him quietly. "We don't need you dying so quickly."

Daryl looks at her quietly. "Only person that can kill a Dixon is a Dixon," he says to her. "I'll be fine. Just stay here and relax." She nods her head before watching him head back out in one of the trucks this time. She knew that he'd be fine. He was Daryl.

But that didn't stop a part of her from worrying.

* * *

"Could I watch him?"

Michonne glances up in surprise when Lucia asks to visit Negan. "You're still under house arrest," Michonne answers calmly.

"Please? If you want me to prove I'm worthy here, let me watch over Negan. I'm a pretty much the meanest person ever if you haven't already gotten that," she states, crossing her arms across her chest. "I won't let him out or anything. I'm not that dumb."

Michonne looks at her calmly before nodding her head. "Fine. Dante stays but you can go."

Lucia nods and takes the keys from Michonne. As she walks away, a smile so evil brightens on her face. She walks down the steps to where Negan's cell was and closed the door behind her. The light just barely reached the inside. She could tell that not a lot got down here too often.

"Who the hell are you? You're new."

Lucia turns around to see a man in the corner. He was hidden within the darkness.

"I'm someone you know."

There was silence between them, and then all of a sudden, the man stands up and walks over to the bars. The moment he recognizes her, a big ol' grin spreads across Negan's face. "Shit, Lucia. Long-time no fucking sees."

She noticed that his beard had grown, and it was grey, but she still found him just as attractive as she did when he had been with her sister. "Long time, no see. I heard you're a bit lonely down here. Might as well make it a little more fun with me."

He raises an eyebrow. "What kind of fun?"

"All kinds of fun," she whispers.

* * *

Daryl hadn't known that finding cats would be harder than he originally thought.

It wasn't that they weren't around. It's just that most were too scared or feral to even come near him. It was a constant battle between trying to lure them in to earn their trust and seeing if he could chase after them. But he knew he didn't want to disappoint Beth. He had to get this stuff.

As he walks around an abandoned pet store this time, he looks around quietly. Then, in the distance, he spots one. It was sitting in the corner with its head down, watching him, almost like it was waiting for him to do something. It was black and white, sort of reminding him of those sandwich cookies people liked. Oreos? That's it.

"Hey, bud," he says quietly. He leans down and squats, holding out a piece of meat. "I know yer probably real hungry. I ain't gonna hurt ya. Just come here and eat."

The cat looks up at him almost questionably, before slowly standing up. He walks over tentatively, step by step, until he was right in front of Daryl. The archer didn't move a single inch. Slowly, the cat started to eat away at the meat until it was all gone. Daryl smiles a bit.

"There ya go." He holds out his hand and the cat sniffs it, before sitting down in front of him. "Here, get another piece." He gives him another small piece of ham, which the cat eats greedily. "Yer used to people, huh?" He spots a collar around the cat's neck that looked old and decrepit, but the name was still tangible to read.

 _'Tom.'_

"Simple," he mumbles. "Well, Tom. Yer gonna come with me." Once he finishes eating the meat, Daryl lifts the cat up into his arms. The cat meows in shock and tries to get away but Daryl holds him tightly. "Yer gonna be fine," he whispers. "Everythin' is gonna be fine."

A few moments later, the cat finally settles. He places Tom in the backseat, before starting up the car. This was the best they were going to have to do until they could find more.

Tom didn't even seem to mind after a few moments. He curled up into a ball and passed out. What Daryl wouldn't do to live the life of a cat and just sleep all day. Now that was a life.

* * *

When Daryl got back to the safe zone, Beth came over to ask him how it had gone. "Just found one that would comply," he says quietly, picking up the cat from the back and waking him up a bit. "It'll be the best we can do for now. He looks old, so he probably knows what he's doin'."

He places Tom down and then Emilia comes out of the trailer. She looks over once she spots Daryl, but her eyes instantly move to the cat. They widen as large as saucers and she instantly starts to cry.

"TOM!"

She runs forward and picks up the cat, who meows and cuddles into her. Daryl looks on in shock. "Ya…"

"Daryl, this was my family cat I thought I lost," she whispers, tears streaming down her cheeks. "He's alive…you saved him…" She runs forward and hugs him with one of her arms, causing him to tense a bit. After a second, he let his guard down for the moment. "Thank you so much…"

"Ain't no trouble. Just glad ya got yer cat back, Emilia," Daryl said quietly. Emilia smiled as she cuddled Tom, who purred softly. His fur was filthy, and he looked skinny. She sat him down on a table before putting flee spot on him and getting rid of the ticks that he had on his fur.

Tom sat patiently, and Daryl helped her dip him into the bucket, so they could wash him. Emilia had honestly thought that she'd never see her cat again after the early days of the Outbreak. She'd been trying to take him with her, but he'd run off scared.

Now he was here, purring, but he had definitely aged a lot and was missing a few teeth. She washed his fur gently combed through the strands, before towel drying him. The cat purred and laid down on the blanket as Beth gave him a small plate with some salmon on it. Tom ate the food hungrily, before drinking from a bowl of water.

"Where did you find him, Daryl?" Emilia asked relieved. She picked up Tom as he cuddled her and began purring softly, his purrs like the rumbling of a motorcycle engine.

"Found him near an abandoned pet shop. He must have been hiding there when this shit happened. Took me a while to gain his trust, but he's calmed down now," Daryl explained quietly. They saw Tom prowling towards the cellar where they stored the sugar, wheat, corn, sourdough, and bread. Not to mention the coffee beans and chocolate that they found on runs.

They all heard him growl, before scratching at the inside of the wall. They followed him to see a small hole where the mice had chewed through to get inside.

Daryl kills two with his crossbow, while Emilia grabs a black bag and disposes of them. Tom is currently eating a mouse and has another one trapped under a large black and white paw.

The mouse tries to escape, but Dog who had been curious, traps it. Beth picks it up with gloved hands. Jesus blocks the hole where the mice have been coming from, and Carlos puts down mouse traps.

"Missed you too, buddy. You've gotten old," Carlos said fondly. He scratched Tom under the chin and the cat purred before walking off with a mouse hanging from his mouth.

"Good boy, Tom. I see you've still got," Emilia said proudly, kissing his forehead. He purred as some of the kids ran over to fuss over the black and white cat. The only cat they'd see next before Tom was Henrietta. She'd died of old age after sitting on Jesus's lap. The cat had been old, having lived at the Hilltop before the Outbreak.

Carlos had finished gathering the apples and saw there were

* * *

names added onto a memorial wall. He assumed these were people who had died either from walkers or from other groups.

 _'Glenn Rhee.'_

 _'Abraham Ford.'_

 _'Sasha Williams.'_

 _'Harlan Carson.'_

 _'Emmett Carson.'_

The list went on. Carlos was going to guess that many of these people were dead because of the Saviors. He sighed and went to wash up.

He was going to eat, shower have a nap and then go on watch. He headed into the house, stroking Tom who was laying on his back, sunbathing in the early evening sunshine.

He smirked, shaking his head and went inside. He was a lazy cat sometimes, that's for sure.

* * *

It was early evening. Emilia was helping deliver Eduardo and Lorena's daughter. Enid was helping her, so she could learn how to help women give birth if she wasn't around.

"Alright Lorena, I can see the head. You're almost there. One more push and you'll have a beautiful baby girl," she said encouragingly to the young brunette-haired woman.

Lorena nodded and with one final scream of pain, she pushed and there was a loud, cry. Emilia held a squalling pink-faced baby girl with thick black curls stuck to her face. Enid gently held her, while Emilia showed Eduardo how to cut the umbilical cord.

She smiled at the happiness radiating from the couple. Enid smiled as well as she weighed and checked over the baby. She was perfectly healthy. Emilia had Enid bathe and wash her, while she and Eduardo helped Lorena clean up. Once that was done, Enid handed over the baby girl who immediately latched onto Lorena's left nipple, as she began breastfeeding her daughter.

"Have you decided on a name?" She asked softly. The couple looked thoughtful. It was Lorena who spoke after sharing a smile with Eduardo.

"Maria Cristina González," Lorena said softly. Eduardo smiled and kissed his daughter's soft pink forehead. Emilia smiled and wrote it on the chart.

A new life had been born into the world.

* * *

The Hilltop Community was celebrating the birth of Maria Cristina González by having a small gathering with gifts being sent to the happy family. Daryl couldn't help but smile. He saw a tired but happy Enid and Emilia talking to Beth quietly, as the three of them laughed.

"My sister adores children, Daryl. It's one of the things that give her joy. A sense of purpose," Carlos explained quietly. He wasn't due on watch until another hour. "That's why she became the doctor she is. Really wanted to help more people bring them into the world."

Daryl looked at him quietly and nodded.

"She and Negan ever have kids together that ya know about?" he asked quietly. Carlos shook his head sadly.

"That's not my story to tell, Daryl," Carlos said seriously. He clapped him on the shoulder, before he went to have a slice of apple pie.

Did Emilia have child by Negan?

He looks over at them. Emilia didn't have anything exposing her skin on, so he couldn't tell if she ever had stretch marks. She did talk about kids, but she had never mentioned one of her own. But people had lost children in this world and it was always too painful to talk about. Even Carol hardly talked about Sophia from all those years ago.

But at the same time, she hated Negan with a passion. He felt like if she had ever had kids by Negan, she wouldn't want to ever have them. But that wasn't who Emilia was. If that was Emilia, she wouldn't have risked her lives going into that safe zone to save a kid she didn't even know.

So, did she have a kid?

He glances down at the plate of food he had and shook his head. He really shouldn't care. That was her life and he had his own. She was just a person to talk to.

But just because he wasn't supposed to care didn't mean he wasn't the least bit curious to know.

* * *

Emilia watches as Liam starts to play around with some of the food and spreads it across his cheeks. Frankie chuckles as she wipes it from him. Beth comes over to Emilia. "You did great delivering their baby," Beth mentions to her quietly. "They told me you made it easy for them."

Emilia scoffs, blushing. "I wouldn't say easy. Birthing a child into the world is never an easy thing to do." She looks over at Beth. "I guess I just know what I'm doing. I've been out of a practice for a while so I'm glad that they think I still got it." She sighs and looks over at Liam. "Truth be told, I thought there would be a lot more of 'that' going on."

Beth's brow furrows. "Of what?"

"Adoptions. Kids parents die, and they're left all alone. I'm surprised more people are having children now rather than just finding the ones that need help. It's a different kind of world that confuses me so much." She smiles a bit. "But I'm happy I brought him back. He should have a family as much as the next person."

Beth smiles. "I always wanted kids." She looks over at Emilia. "I mean, there's still time for me. I'm still young. But it just seems so…"

"Dangerous?" Emilia concludes. Beth nods. "Yeah, it is. Especially in this world. But these people seem to be doing just fine." She nudges Beth's shoulder. "Pretty sure that's because this place is so well-run."

Beth rolls her eyes. "Stop, it's not just me," she chuckles. "Jesus and Aaron do a great job really running this place. I just handle the food and supplies. Daryl is the best hunter I've ever seen so he does well too." She sighs. "My sister actually used to run this place. Maggie Rhee. You can see her husband's name up on the board over there. Glenn. They were so in love."

Emilia's brow furrows. "What happened to them?"

Beth swallows and looks over at her. "Negan smashed Glenn's head in." Emilia glances down at the floor, her grip on her food tightening. Of course, he did. "But it sparked something in us to fight back. For her to fight back. And she did. And we won." Beth sighs. "But after a few years here, after one of our beloved group members died…she decided to leave with her son. Said that the pressure and the sadness was getting too much on her. So, she put me in charge. We've been running well ever since."

Emilia looks at her confused. "And she never comes to visit you?"

Beth shrugs. "Honestly, I don't mind. She was in a bad place when she left. If she's happier now but coming back here brings her pain, I don't want that for her." She throws away her plate once she finishes eating and glances over at where Daryl was bringing in Shadow. "Personally, the one person I'm surprised never had any children was Daryl."

The young woman's expression turned to one of surprise. "Really?"

"Really. You should have seen him when Judith was first born all those years ago. He went out on a run into the wilderness just to find her some formula for her to drink when we didn't know what could be out there. He also fed her a lot. He'd do anything for that little girl. But I was surprised when Jesus and Aaron got Gracie all those years ago and all Daryl got was a dog. Don't judge me, I love Shadow too. But I always thought Daryl would make a great dad."

Emilia looks over at the man quietly. He was sitting outside the trailer he had while eating some food. "Why do you say that?"

"Oh, because he will do anything for the people he loves." Beth turns over to her. "Daryl is almost like a puppy. Or if you want to be more real, a wolf. Once he finds a pact, he will do anything to keep them alive. He's done that for the group and I can only imagine what it would be like if he found someone to love. God, he'd probably go all alpha on anyone who ever messed with them. He just has that personality; you know? It's sort of like Carlos."

Emilia raises a brow. "My brother?" she chuckles. She sees a blush appear on Beth's cheeks.

"Not like that," she states, chuckling a bit. "I mean I've been talking to him a lot since you got here, and he clearly loves you and Agnes deeply. He'd do anything to protect you. I should send him and Daryl out on more hunts together. They'd probably bring back so much food."

Emilia smiles. "Yeah, that is my brother. You're not wrong about that." Beth looks over at Tom, who was sitting at Carlos' feet.

"I always wanted another cat," Beth says to her quietly. "I had one named Salem. Ya know, like the one from that TV show? But he passed away before all this began. I'm happy Daryl found Tom. That's like a miracle for you."

* * *

 _Enjoy, and review :)_


	7. Chapter 7

Summary: Six years after the demise of Rick Grimes, Daryl Dixon is struggling to cope with the grief of losing the brother he had. But what happens when he stumbles upon a lone Spanish family, where one of which is related to Negan? Daryl/OC. Co – Written with WalkingPotterGirl14.

Brave New World

Chapter 7

* * *

"Thanks, Beth. Tom's helped me get through a lot of rough times. I thought I was never gonna see him again. I was trying to get him into a pet carrier when he got frightened and ran off," Emilia said softly, as they saw Tom prowling near the cellar again.

Yep, despite his age the cat still had his hunting instincts. The cat dragged out a mouse and started eating it. She smirked slightly, before going to inspect the cellar with Beth.

It was dark, but there were oil lit lanterns lighting a bit of the way. She saw the mouse traps had worked on the mice. She and Beth swept them up, before giving them to Tom as a present.

"Does Michonne have any kids besides Judith?" Emilia asked curiously. Beth looked deep in thought, and a sad smile was on her face.

"Yeah, she had a son with one of our group members. She named him Rebar Grimes. His father died a few years ago trying to save us from a herd of walkers," she explained sadly, still grieving for Rick as she thought of their leader.

Emilia gave her a sad smile. They went back outside to join the others and they sat together on a wooden bench, as Alden began playing the guitar for everyone.

* * *

The sky was dark with grey clouds gathering. Winter was fast approaching, and everyone was harvesting the last of the crops before the cold finally set in.

Daryl was going on a supply run and to hopefully find more cats. Emilia was coming with him this time. Michonne had said she was accompanying them on a run eventually once she moved people along. He noticed the distrustful looks that Michonne gave Magna. He knew Magna and her group had been sent to the Hilltop after Magna had lied about not being in prison and concealing a weapon.

Michonne was distrustful of new people. Alexandria hadn't taken in any survivors since Rick had died. He sighed and looked at Emilia who was talking to Enid. She was coming with him, as she wanted to find paediatric medical equipment.

"Ready?" Daryl asked quietly. Emilia nodded after saying goodbye to everyone, which included a hug from Agnes. They rode off with the wagon, as Carlos looked on.

He hoped they would be alright. The world was a dangerous place.

* * *

Daryl rode the wagon with Emilia sitting beside him as they looked at the landscape, most of the houses were partially collapsed, burned down or had trees growing out of them. They reached the abandoned safe zone. Daryl made sure the horses were protected from walkers and people, before he cautiously opened the gates with Emilia.

The place was a smoking graveyard, some of the houses were practically burned to the ground. There were only a few walkers roaming around. Something caught Emilia's attention. A walker was lying on the ground, a stab wound to the back of the head but...it's face was missing. Someone had skinned the walker's face off, somehow.

"Daryl, I think you need to see this," she whispered urgently. Daryl walked over and saw what she was examining on the ground. His stomach dropped as he looked at the body.

"What the hell? Did someone skin this walker's face off?" Daryl asked disgusted. He noticed that it had been done with either a knife or a scalpel. He was betting that it had been a knife.

Emilia shivered slightly, and it had nothing to do with being cold. They grabbed what they could from the house. Clothes, underwear, canned food, solar panels, guns, even a few bows and crossbows, and medicine.

They left the ruined safe zone and rode onto the next area. They saw abandoned cars with long dead bodies inside them. Emilia grimaced, as they stopped to a halt and saw why.

A group of people were blocking the road. While a few of them had guns, the rest had shovels or an axe.

"What are you two doing here, Daryl?" The man asked snidely. Emilia felt uneasy around this man. Who the hell were these people?

Daryl sighs and raises his hands in defence. "We don't want no trouble. We're just lookin' for supplies."

One man who was leading them steps forward towards Emilia, but Daryl instantly moves his horse in front of her. Jed smirks at him. Daryl glares.

"I said we didn't want any trouble," Daryl states, his voice leaving no room for argument.

Ever since Rick had died, he had been stepping away from the Sanctuary until he was no longer ever affiliated with it. He hated the idea of even stepping into that old factory. But he knew that the Saviors, whoever they were following now, didn't do shit to them. Which was what they needed.

"Who's she?" Jed asks, looking over at Emilia. She was quiet.

"She's just a survivor, like the rest of us. We just want supplies. We don't want to cause anythin'." He was starting to reach a breaking point, but he knew these guys had no choice but to let him go in front of them or else he would cause issues.

Jed shakes his head before nodding at the others. They finally move away, and Daryl guides his horse through while Emilia moves the wagon, looking at them quietly. She noticed how Jed threw her a smile, one that made her crawl in disgust. This fucking asshole.

She looks away and glances back towards the front, taking a deep breath. Once they were past them, she didn't look back. She and Daryl didn't speak until they were far out of sight of the people.

"Daryl?" She asks quietly. He looks over at her. "Who were those people?"

Daryl was quiet, and for a second, she didn't think that he would reply. He eventually did. "Saviors," he answers gruffly. "People who survived. They ain't too fond of us but they know if they hurt me, they're gonna get fucked. Least they know their place."

Emilia bites her lip. "And those were the people that Negan led?"

He sighs. "Yup."

She nods, and then the two were silent. Her mind thought back to the group. They looked like Negan's buddies. It made a lot of sense.

Fucker.

When Daryl and her finally arrived outside another town, they searched through all the houses that they could. There were so many places that were overgrown with leaves and roots that she felt like it was almost pointless to look inside, but Daryl said that everything was worth a shot.

She did find a few good spots. There was some medicine located in the back of a store that must have been used for its employees, so that might have helped. She headed over to a clinic and looked around. Most of the medicine had been picked clean, and some of the machines had been taken too, but there were still a few things left.

"This will have to do," she says quietly. Before she could take a few, she noticed a smell coming from the back and investigated it, knife in hand. Emilia quickly opens a door and peeks down, before feeling her heart drop. Another skinned walker.

Alright, this was getting weird.

"Someone has a fetish," she mumbles, shaking her head. She heads back into the room and unplugs some of the equipment, before hearing Daryl yelp. She heads outside. "Everything alright?"

"Shit, yeah," Daryl yells out. "Just...ya might wanna see this." Emilia's brow furrows before she walks over to the building, he was in. Quietly, she steps back inside and gasps at what she saw.

So Many. Cats. It had been like they had migrated to this one spot. There were three in a corner, two older and one younger. Some kittens were around as well. "Jesus Christ," she whispers, holding out her hands. "Come here, sweetie." One of the kittens rushes forward into her hands. "What do we do?" she whispers to Daryl. "There's so many."

"We bring 'em back," Daryl states simply. "All I know is that Dog is gonna have a damn field day." Emilia chuckles while she holds the kitten close to her. Daryl works one by one to move the cats into the wagon, before the last couple were the kitten's brothers and sister. Once they were all in, Daryl nods his head. "Let's get outta here before we run into more walkers," he says quietly.

"Yeah let's do that. I found another walker with its face skinned off back at the house," Emilia said grimly, feeling weary. Daryl's expression turned grim.

"Alright, we're gettin' the hell outta of here now. Got everythin' that Hilltop needs. I found a few batteries that we can trade with the Kingdom for, and found a few fishin' nets for Oceanside," Daryl explained quietly. Emilia nodded in understanding as they started riding back to the Hilltop.

* * *

Lucia had been telling Negan about how she and her family had been surviving since the Outbreak had occurred ten years ago. How Carlos along with Emilia had been leading them.

"Carlos, Emilia and abuela are living at the Hilltop Colony. It's a right shithole. Pigs, dogs, cows, fucking goats and a hog everywhere. It's disgusting. I prefer being here, unlike my sister who is useless," Lucia said disdainfully, causing Negan to look at her.

"Did she meet anyone after she left me?" Negan asked resentfully. Lucia shook her head and frowned.

"No, she stayed single, frigid bitch. Although I think there's something going on between her and the archer. Daryl Dixon, I think his name was," Lucia explained snidely, jealousy in her voice as she thought of the handsome but rough looking hunter who was one of the four leaders of Hilltop.

Negan felt angry then. So, his fucking wife was getting it on with Daryl, fucking Dixon of all people?! He felt like breaking out of this cell and demanding to know why Emilia had left him.

Alright, he lied to her and had affairs with women behind her back, not to mention the fact that he'd slept with her older sister. But how the hell had she found out about him and Lucia?

He'd find out. One way or another.

* * *

Carlos had gone outside the gates to take down a few walkers that had been drawn to the noise because of the construction crew fixing up the greenhouse. He took down one from behind with his knife and took down the other two when he noticed something that made his stomach roll in nausea.

The walker's face was missing, like someone had skinned the walker's face off for some fucked up reason. He swallowed, as he got the sense that someone was watching them. And that was when he saw it.

Someone in the woods was watching him, just standing there and watching him calmly. He gripped his knife tightly, and stepped forward, when he felt something latch onto his left boot clad foot.

A bear trap.

"Fuck! Son of a bitch, oh shit!" He cursed angrily, trying to ignore the pain as he tried to free his left foot. The spikes were digging into the flesh of his jeans. He saw a few walkers stumbling towards him, their jaws snapping hungrily.

He grabbed his knife, just as the first one, a truck driver from the looks of it, fell on top of him. He cursed and stabbed it in the head, as he saw more walkers coming out from nowhere.

This was it. He was going to die.

* * *

Daryl had been riding the wagon back to Hilltop when they saw a herd of at least twenty walkers swarming towards a man with his left leg trapped in a bear trap.

It was Carlos.

"Shit, Carlos is in trouble!" He said quickly, Emilia's face paled as they rode faster to the gates of Hilltop. He could see a few men were running over to help, along with Connie and Luke as they tried to get him free.

"Oh fuck, that hurts like hell! Look just leave me, I'll be alright! I'm not worth it!" Carlos said pleadingly, not wanting anyone to die for him or get hurt. Beatrice ran over to help them.

Emilia pulled out her bow and let an arrow loose, Daryl doing the same with his crossbow. They managed to get rid of the walkers that were too close.

Beth ran over with Jesus and Aaron. Carlos was starting to lose blood as the spikes dug deeper into the skin of his lower leg.

"Alden get Earl now!" Beth instructed urgently. The man nodded and hurried into the community, as Carlos tried to stay calm. Daryl ran over with Emilia after they got the wagon into the Hilltop, and saw the trap practically dig into the skin of his lower left leg, tearing into his jean clad leg.

"Someone sent those walkers. I was about to confront this woman who was watching me. She was near the forest, and when I went forward, this happened," Carlos explained grimly, and swallowed. "I saw a walker with its face skinned off."

Daryl and Emilia exchange a glance. "This isn't good," she mutters. One of the men free him of the trap and Beth helps him stand.

"Fuck," he whispers.

"We saw people like that," Daryl and Emilia admits "Walkers with their faces off. We don't know what's going on."

Beth looks at them quietly before sighing. "Well, if they came here that means something. They're watching us." She looks over at Daryl and Emilia. "I hope you got enough to last us a bit."

"We tried. We also got these." She opens the back of the carriage and cats come soaring out. Beth snorts as Tom comes over to greet them. Shadow's head popped up.

"Great. Now we'll need even more fish," she chuckles. Then she sighs and looks over at Carlos. "Let's get you inside. Shit is gonna hurt."

He grunts and allows her to guide him in. Emilia looks over at Daryl. "Do you think whoever those things are...they're a threat?"

Daryl sighs. "I don't know. Let's hope they ain't."

Once they got the cats settled in, Daryl watches as Agnes starts to feed them with some home cooked cat food she had made. "Ya were a cat person?" he asks her quietly.

"Ah, I loved animals," Agnes says softly. "I always tried to make food for my pets because they deserved better than kibble. Might as well try for the ones that are saving our food." She looks over at Daryl. "What about you? You have a dog."

"Like animals too, just always knew dogs were a bit more useful in this world. Tom's good at huntin' mice but then he lays around in the sun," he states.

Agnes laughs as she feeds another cat. "That is true, but doesn't that life sound delightful? Just lying in the sun all day. Wish I could still do that nowadays."

"Guess a lot of people wish they could just relax with worryin' about gettin' shot or robbed," Daryl said dryly. He saw a white cat with large black spots on its fur coming towards him.

He stroked her affectionately, while Shadow was sniffing around the other cats curiously. His tail wagged as he investigated the strange animals, before lying down at Daryl's feet.

"I'm glad that you stood up for my granddaughter when Dante punched her, Daryl. Emilia's been treated badly by Dante and Lucia. Their father wasn't a good man," Agnes explained quietly, sadness in her dark hazel eyes as she thought of her grandchildren.

"Did ya ever meet Negan?" Daryl asked curiously. Agnes's face hardened, and she pressed her lips together in a thin line, before sighing unhappily.

"I met him three times. I honestly thought he was a good man for my Emilia, querido niño. I thought they'd have a happy marriage and have children together, but something changed. Negan kept on having affairs, and Emilia was working late at the hospital, but they were trying to make it work. But then Lucia had her eye on Negan. She wanted him even though he was married to Emilia. They started having an affair, and that was the final straw for my querida nieta," Agnes says sadly, and sighed.

She would have loved seeing Emilia settle down with a good man, and have a few children of her own, but that didn't seem to happen.

Daryl looked at the elderly woman silently. She seemed genuinely saddened that Negan and Emilia had split up. He wondered if she had cared about Negan like a son.

"Ya need anythin', just let me or Beth know, alright?" He asked quietly. The woman nodded and watched as Daryl went up to where his house was.

* * *

Emilia had stitched up the lacerations on Carlos's lower left leg. The wounds were deep but luckily, they would heal. He wouldn't be taking out any walkers for a while. She gave him some antibiotics and a tetanus shot.

He nodded in thanks and she sat in the living room silently, leaning back as she thought of the life she was making here with her older brother and grandmother.

For the first time since the outbreak had occurred, she felt like she could build a life here, and be happy. She looked over at where some children were playing and smiled sadly.

She'd always wanted to be a momma, but it looked like that wasn't going to be in the cards for her yet. Maybe ever. Emilia sighed, and she finished eating the venison steak and began washing up the plates.

It was quiet outside. She sighed softly as she finished washing up, and went upstairs to shower, before heading to bed. She felt exhausted after today.

* * *

Daryl had gone out to hunt again early in the morning and saw to his surprise that Emilia was up as well. She was sitting outside the medical trailer and had a thoughtful look on her face.

"Hey Daryl, are there any lakes, streams or rivers near the Hilltop Colony?" She asked curiously. He saw she was reading a book on herbal medicine.

"Yeah, there's a lake that's close to us and where we go fishin' when Oceanside aren't able to give us fish," Daryl said quietly. Emilia smiled.

"I know this is a weird thing to ask, but can you get me some leeches and put them in a jar filled with water?" She requested seriously, letting Daryl know that she wasn't joking.

Daryl wasn't surprised, but he was shocked that Emilia was talking so calmly about leeches. He knew leeches, and even maggots had been used to treat people before painkillers had come around like morphine.

"I'll see what I can do. How's Carlos doin'?" He asked quietly. The cuts on the man's led had looked damn painful.

"He's restin' but helping Aaron with the crops. Beth's helping Jesus taking stock of what we have to trade," she said softly. Tom ran over with a mouse in his mouth.

Both of them watched as Tom played with the mouse, before catching it with his paw, and eating it.

"At least someone's enjoying themselves, today," Emilia said wryly. She put Enid in charge of the medical trailer for today. She and Siddiq were training Enid with all the medical knowledge they knew about. It was better for her to know about it if something bad was to happen.

Daryl nodded, and watched as she grabbed a jar and filled it up with water, before they started heading towards the river where they would find leeches.

He couldn't believe that he was doing this, trying to find leeches of all things with Emilia, but she did have a point. Antibiotics and painkillers would eventually run out, so the gardeners at Hilltop were growing poppies in order to make morphine.

It was hard work, but Tanya seemed to know what she was doing as she'd been trained by Nabila about gardening. Frankie knew how to grow poppies, due to her mother. Hopefully, they'd be able to make their own version of antibiotics. He wished that Hershel was here. He'd know what to do, and what plants could be used as medicine.

* * *

Carlos hated not being to work on the fields, so he kept busy by helping Beth with the cats. A few of them were newborn kittens and were sleeping.

Beth was cuddling a tabby cat, that purred softly and nuzzled her face before glancing at Carlos who smiled. He saw D.J coming towards him with an uneasy expression.

"Hey, Negan's causing issues at Alexandria. He...wants to see Emilia; says it's important."

Carlos raises an eyebrow. "Important? I highly doubt that's a real possibility," he snorts.

"Michonne says it is."

Beth's brow raises. "Are you joking?" She asks. Usually if Michonne thought anything was important it usually was but Beth never thought she'd see the day where she would agree with what Negan was saying.

D.J. sighs. "Well, it's not that it's important, important. It's the fact that he refuses to eat until she comes to visit him or see him to talk about it. It's been a while since he's actually had a meal." Carlos exchanges a look with Beth, who seemed to be trying to figure out if it was worth it to see this man.

"I don't trust him," Beth states. "I know that he and Emilia were a couple for a bit before this, but I don't trust him being in the same room as her. It doesn't seem right."

Carlos sighs before looking over at them. "We'll talk it over with Emilia when she gets back with Daryl. See what she thinks." D.J. nods before returning to his work. Carlos looks over at Beth. "What the hell could Negan want Emilia for?"

Beth bites her lip and shakes her head. "I have no idea."

* * *

When Emilia had caught a lot of leeches, Daryl had to stare at it. There had to be at least fifty in one jar, and all seemed to be trying to get something to eat. He looks over at her. "Ya sure this is what ya need?"

She nods and looks up at him. "Yes. See, with leeches, they're great at increasing blood circulations and freeing up blood clots. A lot of people would use these for medical situations back then because they would ironically help prevent the amount of blood loss there could have been. If we ever need help, this might be the call."

Daryl shakes his head. "Just hope ya know what yer doin'."

"Well, do you trust me?" She asks him as they reached Hilltop again.

Daryl looks down at her quietly. "I do."

"Then trust the leeches as well." She walks in, and almost as soon as she does, Carlos was coming out.

"We have a problem, sis."

She looks at him confused as she hands off the jar of leeches to Enid. "Place that in the fridge in the trailer." She nods and heads off. "What's the problem?" She asks him quietly.

"Negan." Emilia looks at him confused. "He wants to see you. D.J. said that he kept saying it was important."

"I'd rather die than see him again."

"We don't know what is going on," Beth states coming over. "All we know is that he's refusing to eat until he sees you again and that he wants to know some things. But it's your call if you want to go or not."

* * *

 _Enjoy, and review :)_


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